Term: Magnocellular preoptic nucleus

Definition: This nucleus comes as close to a basal nucleus of Meynert as anything in the rat; cholinergic neurons here innervate preferentially the olfactory bulb. It was originally named the magnocellular preoptic nucleus, but it seems doubtful if it is derived from third ventricular neuroepithelium during embryogenesis (thus “preoptic” has been dropped from the name). See Swanson 1976a; Rye et al. 1984; and notes 61 and 63.

Nomenclature: Swanson-2004