Morphological characterization of the bursting and nonbursting neurones in the olfactory centre of the terrestrial slug Limax marginatus

We investigated the morphological characteristics of physiologically characterized neurones in the procerebrum (PC) of the terrestrial slug Limax marginatus. The electrophysiological characteristics of the neurones were determined using the perforated patch recording technique. By comparing the shapes and sizes of somata, we found that the somata of bursting neurones were larger and had more oblong shapes than those of nonbursting neurones, indicating that the bursting and nonbursting neurones in the PC could be discriminated on the basis of the sizes and shapes of their soma. Injection of fluorescent dyes into the bursting and nonbursting neurones revealed morphological differences in the neurites. The bursting neurones had extensive projections within the cell body layer, and the major neurites of the bursting neurones were oriented along the dorsal-ventral axis. In contrast, the nonbursting neurones had neurites extending into the neuropile layers, where terminals of both sensory and presumed output neurones exist.