DISTRIBUTION OF BUCCALIN-LIKE IMMUNOREACTIVITY IN THE CENTRAL-NERVOUS-SYSTEM AND PERIPHERAL-TISSUES OF APLYSIA-CALIFORNICA

The neuropeptide buccalin A was originally purified and sequenced from a nerve-muscle system used in feeding-related behaviors of Aplysia californica in which it has been proposed that it acts as a modulatory cotransmitter. The distribution of buccalin-like immunoreactivity in the central ganglia and in peripheral tissues of Aplysia californica was examined by whole mount immunohistochemical techniques. Immunoreactive material was located in specific cell bodies and clusters of neurons in each of the ganglia. Immunoreactive fibers were present in each of the connectives between ganglia, in tracts coursing through the ganglia, and in the majority of the peripheral nerves. Most fibers were smooth in contour, but some had regularly spaced swellings. Varicosities containing immunoreactive material were located on specific neuronal somata and on certain tissues associated with the feeding, circulatory, digestive, and reproductive systems. The specific and widespread distribution of buccalin-like immunoreactivity supports the hypothesis that members of the buccalin peptide family act as neuromodulators or neurotransmitters in a variety of central and peripheral circuits in Aplysia.