Journal of Neuroscience, Vol 4, 265-273, Copyright © 1984 by Society for Neuroscience
Monoclonal antibodies to specific astroglial and neuronal antigens reveal the cytoarchitecture of the Bergmann glia fibers in the cerebellum
AL de Blas
The cytoarchitecture of the cerebellar Bergmann fibers in the adult rat was
investigated. Two monoclonal antibodies, one specific for the Bergmann
fibers and astrocyte processes and the other specific for the cell bodies
and dendrites of the Purkinje cells as well as an antiserum to the glial
fibrillary acidic protein, were used in immunocytochemical
peroxidase-antiperoxidase assays. The Bergmann fibers are revealed as
columns organized in long vertical palisades parallel to the longitudinal
plane of the folium. The palisades are not continuous; instead they are
formed by sets of two to six aligned Bergmann fibers. Each of these sets of
Bergmann fibers is separated from its longitudinally aligned neighbors by
gaps. Each Bergmann fiber is formed by a bundle of two to four Bergmann
glia processes which frequently show a helical organization. These results
help to reconcile the different views on the organization of the Bergmann
fibers derived from the studies done with the light microscope versus those
done with the electron microscope. The Bergmann glia may play a fundamental
role in directing the geometrical organization of the cerebellar
constituents.
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