Vertical bundles of the white matter fibers in the pons revisited: preliminary study utilizing the Klingler technique

Abstract

The inner structure of the pons contains several layers of transverse and vertical fibers and many nuclei. The vertical bundles are described as fibers of the corticospinal tract, corticonuclear tract, frontopontine tract and parieto-temporopontine tract organized in three layers. The aim of this study was to investigate the structure of the vertical bundles in the ventral pons using the modified Klingler method. Ten brain stem specimens were investigated. Specimens were fixed in 10% formalin, frozen for 24 h to separate nerve fibers by ice crystals, and then unfrozen again in 10% formalin solution. Afterwards, the specimens were dissected using a sharpened spatula. Results point to the existence of three main layers of vertical bundles and a small, constant, and superficial fourth fascicle that is yet to be described in the literature. We propose the name fasciculus longitudinalis superficialis (superficial longitudinal fascicle) for this group of vertical fibers of the pons.