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. 1969 Mar;62(3):749–755. doi: 10.1073/pnas.62.3.749

INCORPORATION OF 14C-TRYPTOPHAN INTO 14C-PROTEIN BY CULTURED RAT PINEALS: STIMULATION BY l-NOREPINEPHRINE*

Richard J Wurtman 1,2,3,4, Harvey M Shein 1,2,3,4, Julius Axelrod 1,2,3,4, Frances Laren 1,2,3,4
PMCID: PMC223662  PMID: 4308094

Abstract

Organ cultures of individual rat pineals incorporate 14C-tryptophan into proteins at a nearly constant rate for at least 48 hours. Previous studies have shown that these cultures also convert 14C-tryptophan to serotonin, melatonin, and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid, and release these indoles into the media. The formation of 14C-protein from 14C-tryptophan is accelerated by the addition to the culture medium of l-norepinephrine or related catecholamines but is not modified by serotonin, melatonin, or 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid.

One mechanism by which norepinephrine stimulates the synthesis of 14C-protein from 14C-tryptophan involves increasing the uptake of the 14C-tryptophan into pineal parenchymal cells, inasmuch as (1) norepinephrine increases the intracellular content of 14C-tryptophan as well as its conversion to its major products, 14C-protein and 14C-indoles; (2) norepinephrine does not stimulate 14C-protein synthesis in pineal organs which contain a previously fixed amount of 14C-tryptophan; and (3) norepinephrine does not stimulate 14C-protein synthesis from 14C-methionine or 14C-leucine.

The finding that norepinephrine, but not serotonin, can stimulate the incorporation of 14C-tryptophan into pineal proteins is consistent with the hypothesis that norepinephrine is the neurotransmitter substance utilized by pineal sympathetic nerve endings.

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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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