Origin of fibers innervating the basilar artery of the cat.

The afferent and efferent projections of the cat basilar artery were examined using retrograde axoplasmic transport techniques. Following application of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) or wheat germ agglutinin-HRP (WGA-HRP) to the vessel wall, retrogradely labeled cells were observed in trigeminal, superior vagal, superior cervical, stellate and pterygopalatine ganglia. WGA-HRP injected into the pterygopalatine ganglion was retrogradely transported to cells of the reticular formation previously described as the superior salivatory nucleus. These results are discussed in relation to recent physiological data demonstrating neural involvement in the control of cerebral blood flow and vascular headache.