Collateral projections of the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus nerve to the stomach and the intestines in the rat

Abstract

Summary:The vagal motor neurons project to the gastrointestinal tract by way of the gastric, celiac and hepatic branches of the vagus trunk. We have examined whether single neurons in the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus nerve (DMV) have collateral projections to the stomach, the duodenum and the intestines using a double-labeling tracing method. Following application of Fluorogold to the cut end of the accessory celiac branch and injection of cholera toxin subunit b (CTb) into the body of stomach, many Fluorogold-and CTb-labeled neurons were found throughout the DMV. Most CTb-labeled neurons (about 90%) were also labeled with Fluorogold. When Fluorogold was applied to the cut end of the accessory celiac or the gastric branch and CTb was injected into the duodenum, many Fluorogold-labeled neurons and CTb-labeled neurons were found in the DMV. About 20% of CTb-labeled neurons were also labeled with Fluorogold. These results indicate that many neurons in the DMV send collateral projections to both the stomach and the intestines innervated by way of the celiac branch. However, many neurons in the DMV projecting to the duodenum do not project to the stomach or the intestines caudal to the duodenum.

Sleeve Gastrectomy and Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass Alter the Gut-Brain Communication

“…During VSG, the stomach is divided longitudinally and only very distal fibers of gastric branches are severed while, during RYGB, the stomach is transected transversely and both the ventral and the dorsal branches of the gastric vagus are transected [ 42 ]. The very few retrogradely labeled neurons found after RYGB in NG and DMV ( Figure 1 ) may represent the previously reported collateral projections to the stomach from celiac and accessory celiac branches of the subdiaphragmatic vagus [ 43 ], which are spared during the RYGB procedure. Nonetheless, the implication of this result is that RYGB but not VSG compromises the retrograde transport via both the afferent and the efferent fibers of the gastric vagal branches and disconnects the vagal signaling from the stomach to the hindbrain.…”

Cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) peptide in the enteric nervous system of the porcine esophagus

“…The extrinsic innervation of the esophagus, the stomach, and the intestine comprises projections of parasympathetic [1], sympathetic [2], and spinal neurons [3]. Parasympathetic efferent innervation of the major part of the digestive tract (from the esophagus to the transverse colon) is supplied by the vagal nerve and neurons located within dorsal motor nucleus of the vagal nerve (DMV) within the brainstem [4,5]. However, the posterior segments of the GI tract (from the descending colon to the anus) are innervated mainly by projections of neurons positioned in dorsal intermediolateral column of the sacral spinal cord (neuromeres S1-S4) [4,6].…”

Arginine Vasopressin Injected into the Dorsal Motor Nucleus of the Vagus Inhibits Gastric Motility in Rats

“…Recent studies have demonstrated that AVP is synthesized throughout the brain and can function as a neurotransmitter/neuromodulator and modulate other complicated and varying autonomic function, not just antidiuresis and vascular tone [ 1 – 5 ]. The dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMV) primarily serves parasympathetic functions and consists largely of vagal preganglionic neurons that project to the stomach and control gastric motility [ 6 ]. Numerous anatomical and electrophysiological studies have provided evidence for direct and monosynaptic projections from the PVN to the DMV [ 7 – 9 ], which indicates that afferent information from the PVN to the DMV might participate in the process of modulating activities of neurons in the DMV.…”