The present ultrastructural study focuses
on two of the subnuclei of the IO: The medial
accessory olive (MAO) and the principal
olive (PO). These subnuclei, which are
predominantly innervated by descending
systems and by a recurrent pathway from the
central cerebellar nuclei, may be involved in
the preparation and execution of movements.
Accurate timing obviously is essential in
these processes. The morphological observations
of this study will be discussed in
relation to the electrophysiological properties
of the olivary neurons (Chapter V). It will be
attempted to show that the specific formation
of the dendritic elements of these cells
together with their synaptic input are well
suited to serve as a timing devic
