Primary afferent axons in the tract of Lissauer in the monkey.

The main thrust of the present study was to determine the numbers of primary afferent fibers in the tract of Lissauer in the monkey. The findings are that approximately 40% of the axons in the tract of Lissauer are primary afferent axons from a single segment, and approximately another 40% are primary afferents from segments cranial and caudal to the segment under consideration. Presumably, the remaining 20% are propriospinal axons. There is relatively little difference in the proportions of primary afferents in medial as opposed to lateral parts of the tract, and in this respect the monkey differs somewhat from the rat and cat. Thus in the monkey the tract of Lissauer should probably be regarded as a primary afferent pathway with the propriospinal forming a distinct but relatively minor component of the tract.