• The Korean Journal of Zoology
• /
• v.38 no.3
• /
• pp.348-355
• /
• 1995

This Investigation was carried out to map the morphological development of serotonin-immunoreactive neurons in the larval brain of the cabbage butterfly, Artogeia rapae, during five larval stages. Both the first instar larva and the second instar larva contained twenty serotonin-immunoreactive (5-HTi) neurons in each brain. The fibres of 5-HTI commissure was interconnected to two cerebral hemispheres in both brains. However, the 5-HTi commissural fibres was Increased in number in the second-instar larva brain. In the brain of the second Insar larva these 5-HTi fibres formed rich arborization in contralateral neuropils, especially In the posterior parts of it. The third-Instar larva braIn, which Included twenty two 5-HTi neurons, had three groups of 5-HTi commissural fibres. In the fourth Instar larva, the number of 5-HTi fibres as well as 5-HTi cell bodies increased in the brain. The fifth-instar larva brain, which contained fifty four 5-HTi cell bodies, showed the largest number of 5-HTi cell bodies In developing larval brains. The 5-HTi fibres formed richest commissural fibres and some of them run parallel to anteroposterior axis.