Objective: To observe the morphological characteristics of the glutamatergic projection pathway from the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray (vlPAG) to the parafascicular nucleus of the thalamus (PF) in mice. Methods: Firstly, the expression of vesicular glutamate transporter 2 (vGluT2)-positive neurons in the vlPAG was observed by retrogradely trans-monosynaptic labeling with the retrograde virus (RV) in vGluT2-Cre mice. Then fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) was used to observe RV and vGluT2-positive neurons. Results: (1)After injecting RV into the PF of vGluT2-Cre mice, RV retrograde labeled neurons were observed in the rostral and caudal segments of the vlPAG. (2)By FISH staining, it was observed that vGluT2-positive neurons and RV were co-labeled in vlPAG, and the number of double labels accounted for 33.2±8.7% of RV. Conclusion: The vGluT2-positive neurons in the vlPAG sent fiber projections to the PF, and form monosynaptic connections with vGluT2-positive neurons in the PF.
LI Dongning
,
LIU Yaohua
,
LI Fei
,
LI Liang
,
LI Yunqing
. Morphologicstudy of the glutamatergic projecting pathway from the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray to the parafascicular nucleus of the thalamus in mice[J]. Journal of Baotou Medical College, 2026
, 42(3)
: 33
-37
.
DOI: 10.16833/j.cnki.jbmc.2026.03.007
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