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. 1971 Aug;42(4):543–557. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1971.tb07139.x

Action of 6-hydroxydopamine on lamb sympathetic ganglia, vas deferens and adrenal medulla

A combined histochemical, ultrastructural and biochemical comparison with the effects of reserpine

T B Cheah, L B Geffen, B Jarrott, A Ostberg
PMCID: PMC1665778  PMID: 5165587

Abstract

1. The effects of a single dose of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) compared with those of chronic reserpine treatment were studied in lamb sympathetic neurones and adrenal medulla by a combination of fluorescence histochemistry, electron microscopy and radiochemical assay.

2. In sympathetic ganglia, 6-OHDA produced a rise in noradrenaline concentration within 24 h, and falls in tyrosine hydroxylase and monoamine oxidase activities, whereas reserpine caused a fall in noradrenaline, a rise in tyrosine hydroxylase activity and no change in monoamine oxidase activity. The fluorescence of intra- and postganglionic axons increased greatly within 24 h of 6-OHDA, and there was a corresponding accumulation of large dense-core vesicles within many axons whose neurotubules were disrupted. The changes were almost reversed after 3 weeks.

3. In the vas deferens, the concentration of noradrenaline and tyrosine hydroxylase and monoamine oxidase activities had all fallen 24 h after 6-OHDA treatment and had started to recover 3 weeks later. In the adrenal medulla, 6-OHDA did not alter NA concentrations but increased tyrosine hydroxylase activity whereas reserpine depleted noradrenaline and increased tyrosine hydroxylase activity.

4. The changes produced in sympathetic ganglia by 6-OHDA may be due both to a direct action on the axoplasmic transport of noradrenaline containing vesicles and indirectly to the reaction of the neurones to loss of the integrity of their axons.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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