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The distribution of substance P (SP) immunofluorescence was investigated in the Gasserian ganglion, ophthalmic nerve and in the anterior segment of the rabbit eye. About one third of the nerve cell bodies in the Gasserian ganglion exhibited SP immunofluorescence, which was also observed in some nerve fibres of the ophthalmic nerve. In the cornea, some SP-positive nerves were found in the stroma and few of them were also observed in the epithelium. The iris contained numerous nerve fibres with SP immunofluorescence. In the sphincter area such fibres were circular, while the orientation of the SP fibres was radial in the dilator muscle. Both in the iris and in the ciliar body, the largest vessels are surrounded by nerves exhibiting SP immunofluorescence. A few nerve fibres also appeared in the stroma of the ciliary processes.

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The auditory and vestibular sense-organs of the rabbit were examined for the presence of substance P(SP) by an immunohistochemical technique using a monoclonal SP-antibody. Between 30 and 40 per cent of the cells of the vestibular ganglia and about 50 per cent of the spiral ganglion cells innervating the extreme basal part of the cochlea showed SP-like immunoreactivity. The neural elements in the vestibular sensory epithelia, notably the calyx-formed nerve terminals of type 1 sensory cells of the maculae, also showed strong SP-like immunoreactivity. The findings suggest the possibility of a modulator or transmitter role for SP in the inner ear function.

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