NADPH-DIAPHORASE IN A CEPHALOPOD BRAIN (SEPIA) - PRESENCE IN AN ANALOG OF THE CEREBELLUM

THIS paper presents the first evidence of the presence of NADPH-diaphorase (NO synthase) in a cephalopod brain. NADPH-diaphorase is selectively localized in the central nervous system of Sepia: only the neuropils of the spines of the peduncle and posterior anterior basal lobes exhibit an intense positive staining. Staining is completely absent from the cell bodies. When the structural analogies of the peduncle and anterior basal lobes are correlated with the cerebellum, these findings suggest that NO may be involved as a signal molecule in learned motor skills.