Deep and superficial amygdala nuclei projections revealed in vivo by probabilistic tractography

Copyright © 2011 Society for Neuroscience and the authors. The The Journal of Neuroscience uses a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike licence: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/.Despite a homogenous macroscopic appearance on magnetic resonance images, subregions of the amygdala express distinct functional profiles as well as corresponding differences in connectivity. In particular, histological analysis shows stronger connections for superficial (i.e., centromedial and cortical), compared with deep (i.e., basolateral and other), amygdala nuclei to lateral orbitofrontal cortex and stronger connections of deep compared with superficial, nuclei to polymodal areas in the temporal pole. Here, we use diffusion weighted imaging with probabilistic tractography to investigate these connections in humans. We use a data-driven approach to segment the amygdala into two subregions using k-means clustering. The identified subregions are spatially contiguous and their location corresponds to deep and superficial nuclear groups. Quantification of the connection strength between these amygdala clusters and individual target regions corresponds to qualitative histological findings in non-human primates, indicating such findings can be extrapolated to humans. We propose that connectivity profiles provide a potentially powerful approach for in vivo amygdala parcellation and can serve as a guide in studies that exploit functional and anatomical neuroimaging.The Wellcome Trust, a Max Planck Research Award and Swiss National Science Foundation

Comparative anatomy of ovules in Galinsoga, Solidago and Ratibida (Asteraceae)

Many Asteraceae species have been introduced into horticulture as ornamental or interesting exotic plants. Some of them, including Solidago and Galinsoga, are now aggressive weeds; others such as Ratibida are not. Special modifications of the ovule tissue and the occurrence of nutritive tissue have been described in several Asteraceae species, including invasive Taraxacum species. This study examined whether such modifications might also occur in other genera. We found that the three genera examined – Galinsoga (G. quadriradiata), Solidago (S. canadensis, S. rigida, S. gigantea) and Ratibida (R. pinnata) – differed in their nutritive tissue structure. According to changes in the integument, we identified three types of ovules in Asteraceae: “Taraxacum” type (recorded in Taraxacum, Bellis, Solidago, Chondrilla), with well-developed nutritive tissue having very swollen cell walls of spongy structure; “Galinsoga” type (in Galinsoga), in which the nutritive tissue cells have more cytoplasm and thicker cell walls than the other integument parenchyma cells, and in which the most prominent character of the nutritive tissue cells is well-developed rough ER; and “Ratibida” type (in Ratibida), in which the nutritive tissue is only slightly developed and consists of large highly vacuolated cells. Our study and future investigations of ovule structure may be useful in phylogenetic analyses

Ovule structure of Scotch thistle Onopordum acanthium L. (Cynareae, Asteraceae)

Studies concerning the ultrastructure of the periendothelial zone integumentary cells of Asteraceae species arescarce. The aim was to check whether and/or what kinds of integument modifications occur in Onopordum acanthium. Ovule structure was investigated using light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and histochemistry. For visualization of calcium oxalate crystals, the polarizing microscopy was used. The periendothelial zone of integument in O. acanthium is well developed and composed of mucilage cells near the integumentary tapetum and large, highly vacuolated cells at the chalaza and therefore they differ from other integumentary cells. The cells of this zone lack starch and protein bodies. Periendothelial zone cells do not have calcium oxalate crystals, in contrast to other integument cells. The disintegration of periendothelial zone cells was observed in a mature ovule. The general ovule structure of O. acanthium is similar to other members of the subfamily Carduoideae, although it is different to “Taraxacum”, “Galinsoga” and “Ratibida” ovule types

Announcement of the Summer School of Biology 1923 July 7-August 17

Official Publication of Cornell University V.14 1923/2

Cortex of the Suprarenal (Adrenal) Gland of Phoca Vitulina Richardi

Author Institution: Department of Anatomy, Ohio State University ; Department of Anatomy, Texas A & M Universit

Business and the Good Shepherd

Know that the lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture” Psalm 100:3 (NASB). These words became the basis for a complete overhaul of one of my favorite class periods in one of my favorite courses: Ethical, Social, and Legal Environment of Business, where I teach about the agency theor