Anatomical relationships of monoaminergic and neuropeptide Y-containing fibres with luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone systems in the preoptic area of the sheep brain: immunohistochemical studies.

Immunohistochemical double-labellings of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone and neuropeptide Y, serotonin, tyrosine hydroxylase and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase, were performed in the preoptic area at the level of the organum vasculosum laminae terminalis. The observed neuropeptide Y-, serotonin-, tyrosine hydroxylase- and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase-immunoreactive fibres presented large varicosities when they were found within close proximity to luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone-containing perikarya. The fact that neuropeptide Y- and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase-immunoreactive fibres exhibited the same morphological characteristics and the comparison of the distribution of these two fibre populations raised the possibility of the co-localization of neuropeptide Y and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase in the same fibres. Dopamine-beta-hydroxylase- and tyrosine hydroxylase-immunoreactive fibres were morphologically different, suggesting that both dopaminergic and noradrenergic fibres could contact luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone-containing perikarya. Serotonin-immunoreactive fibres were also found close to the perikarya and to the proximal dendrite of the luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone-containing neurons. This study showed only putative sites of interactions between chemically identified fibres and luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone-containing neurons. Further ultrastructural immunocytochemical investigations are needed to ascertain the existence of synaptic contacts.