Antigenic compartmentation of the cerebellar cortex in an Australian marsupial, the tammar wallaby Macropus eugenii.

ABSTRACT

The mammalian cerebellar cortex is apparently uniform in composition, but a complex heterogeneous pattern can be revealed by using biochemical markers such as zebrin II/aldolase C, which is expressed by a subset of Purkinje cells that form a highly reproducible array of transverse zones and parasagittal stripes. The architecture revealed by zebrin II expression is conserved among many taxa of birds and mammals. In this report zebrin II immunohistochemistry has been used in both section and whole-mount preparations to analyze the cerebellar architecture of the Australian tammar wallaby (Macropus eugenii). The gross appearance of the wallaby cerebellum is remarkable, with unusually elaborate cerebellar lobules with multiple sublobules and fissures. However, despite the morphological complexity, the underlying zone and stripe architecture is conserved and the typical mammalian organization is present.