Sagittal Silver Section x= +10.0

X= +10.0

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Many commissural axons connect the two sides of the brain. Some are collected into discrete bundles (lateral inferior protocerebral tract; l I pr t), others extend as pairs or a few pairs of axons and cannot be easily traced in serial sections. At this level, bundles can be seen that contribute to the great commissure (outlined in carmine; g c). Above it are bundles of axons from the lobula. Each bundle consists of all the axons from a single ensemble of small field retintopic ouput neurons. Each ensemble comprises a single morphological type of neuron. By counting the number of bundles one may get an idea of how many ensembles are arranged in the lobula. The axons of each lobula ensemble project to a specific optic focus (also called optic glomerulus) in the lateral deutocerebrum and in parts of the protocerebrum. The most anterior of these foci is the anterior optic tubercle (ant opt tu), which, in larger flies, derives inputs from the medulla and lobula, via the anterior optic tract (a op t).

As sections are viewed more laterally, the posterior optic tract can be followed anteriorly to its origin at the anterior margin of the medulla.

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AA00141