Ultrastructure of the cat inferior olive : an anatomical study using three new combination techniques

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 device