Ultrastructural evidence for the axonal localization of caudodorsal cell hormone mRNA in the central nervous system of the mollusc Lymnaea stagnalis

The technique of in situ hybridization has been used to evaluate the expression of an ovulation hormone mRNA (caudodorsal cell hormone; CDCH) in the central nervous system (CNS) of the mollusc Lymnaea stagnalis. Hybridization with radioactive as well as with nonradioactive labeled oligonucleotide and plasmid probes revealed a specific labeling on cell bodies of caudodorsal cells (CDCs), which are known to produce CDCH, on the light microscopical level. In addition, specific labeling was observed outside the cell bodies, as far as the cerebral commissure, where CDCH is released in the haemolymph. To investigate whether these signals represent an axonal localization of the CDCH mRNA, we performed in situ hybridization at the electron microscopical (EM) level. The results showed an intraaxonal localization of CDCH mRNA with digoxigenin labeled oligonucleotide and plasmid probes. Gold labeling was observed in secretion granules, and double labeling experiments showed that these granules also contain CDCH. This specific intragranular localization suggest that CDCH mRNA is transported through the axon and released by exocytosis in the haemolymph. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.