Anat Cell Biol.  2011 Mar;44(1):8-13. 10.5115/acb.2011.44.1.8.

Infrared-sensitive pit organ and trigeminal ganglion in the crotaline snakes

• Moon C

• KMID: 2168863
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5115/acb.2011.44.1.8

Abstract

The infrared (IR) receptors in the pit organ of crotaline snakes are very sensitive to temperature. The sensitivity to IR radiation is much greater in crotaline snakes than in boid snakes because they have a thermosensitive membrane suspended in a pair of pits that comprise the pit organ. The vasculature of the pit membrane, which is located near IR-sensitive terminal nerve masses, the IR receptors, supplies the blood necessary to provide cooling and the energy and oxygen that the IR receptors require. The ophthalmic and maxillary branches of the trigeminal nerve innervate the pit membrane. In crotaline snakes, the trigeminal ganglion (TG) is divided into the ophthalmic and maxillomandibular ganglia; a prominent septum further separates the two divisions of the maxillomandibular ganglion. The TG neurons in the ophthalmic ganglion and the maxillary division of the maxillomandibular ganglion relay IR sensation to the brain. This article reviews the IR-sensitive pit organ and trigeminal sensory system structures in crotaline snakes.

Keyword

Infrared receptor; Pit organ; Crotaline snake; Trigeminal ganglion

MeSH Terms

Brain
Crotalid Venoms
Equipment and Supplies
Ganglion Cysts
Membranes
Neurons
Oxygen
Sensation
Snakes
Trigeminal Ganglion
Trigeminal Nerve
Crotalid Venoms
Oxygen

Figure

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  Fig. 1 The pit organ of the crotaline snake Trimeresurus flavoviridis. (A) Crotaline snakes have a pair of pit organs, which are infrared (IR) receptors, one located on each side of the face roughly midway between the nostril and the eye. (B) A cross-section of the pit organ in crotaline snakes. (C) Cross-sections of the two types of IR receptor organs in boid snakes. IR receptors are located beneath the surface of the labial scales and the fundus of the pits. E, eye; N, nostril; PO, pit organ.

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  Fig. 2 Scanning electron micrographs of the pit membrane in the crotaline snake Trimeresurus flavoviridis. (A) A cross-section of the crotaline pit membrane. (B) TNMs viewed from above after stripping the OEC (inset). Individual TNMs exhibit a network of trenches, demarcating the surface into many incomplete compartments. (C) TNMs and MF viewed from beneath after stripping the IEC (inset). The nerves entering (left) the pit membrane are unbranched MFs, with a diameter of 3.53±0.49 µm (n=10), and they course beneath the TNMs. (D) A micrograph of the pit membrane viewed from above after stripping away the OEC and some TNMs (inset). A UF terminates on a BV. The diameter was 0.21±0.05 µm (n=10). (E) A lateral view of a TNM with an axon (inset). White arrow indicates where the MF loses its sheath. BV, blood vessel; IEC, inner epithelium and connective tissue; MF, myelinated nerve fiber; OEC, outer epithelium and connective tissue; TNM, terminal nerve mass; UF, unmyelinated nerve fiber. Scale bars=10 µm (B-D), 5 µm (E).

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  Fig. 3 A schematic diagram and the histological structure of a horizontal section of a trigeminal ganglion in the crotaline snake Trimeresurus flavoviridis. OP, ophthalmic ganglion; MM, maxilla-mandibular ganglion; V1, ophthalmic nerve; V2, maxillary nerve; V3, mandibular nerve. Hematoxylin and eosin staining. Scale bars=200 µm.

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