Monoamine-containing neurons in the central nervous system of Megalobulimus oblongus (Gastropoda, Pulmonata)

The central nervous system (CNS) of the pulmonate gastropod Megalobulimus oblongus was subjected to histofluorescence by the glyoxylic acid method and to 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine (5,7-DHT) treatment to reveal the presence of monoaminergic neurons. Glyoxylic acid histochemistry labeled catecholamine cell bodies in the buccal, cerebral and pedal ganglia and monoaminergic fiber tracts distributed throughout the CNS of Megalobulimus. Serotonergic cell bodies were detected by the glyoxylic acid method and 5,7 DHT administration (until 16 weeks of treatment) in the cerebral, right parietal, visceral and pedal ganglia. The pedal ganglion was the region that showed the greatest number of serotonergic neurons. Mapping of monoaminergic neurons in M. oblongus established comparisons with the CNS of other gastropods. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Inc.