Journal
FRONTIERS IN NEUROANATOMY
Volume 8, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
FRONTIERS MEDIA SA
DOI: 10.3389/fnana.2014.00166
Keywords
neuropile compartements; Cardiocondyla obscurior; neuroanatomy; fiber tracts; hymenoptera
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Funding
- Swiss National Science Foundation [31003A_149499]
- Novartis Foundation for Biomedical Research
- Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF) [31003A_149499] Funding Source: Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF)
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A wide spectrum of occupied ecological niches and spectacular morphological adaptations make social insects a prime object for comparative neuroanatornical studies. Eusocial insects have evolved complex societies based on caste polyphenism. A diverse behavioral repertoire of morphologically distinct castes of the same species requires a high degree of plasticity in the central nervous system. We have analyzed the central brain neuropils and fiber tract systems of the worker of the ant Cardiocondyla obscurior, a model for the study of social traits. Our analysis is based on whole mount preparations of adult brains labeled with an antibody against Drosophila-Synapsin, which cross-reacts strongly with synapses in Cardiocondyla. Neuropil compartments stand out as domains with a certain texture and intensity of the anti-Synapsin signal. By contrast, fiber tracts, which are composed of bundles of axons accompanied by glia and are devoid of synapses, appear as channels or sheaths with low anti-Synapsin signal. We have generated a digital 3D atlas of the Cardiocondyla brain neuropil. The atlas provides a reference for future studies of brain polymorphisms in distinct castes, brain development or localization of neurotransmitter systems.
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