失血引起兔肾神经和肾上腺交感神经活动的变化

本文观察了急性失血引起的戊巴比妥钠麻醉兔的肾交感神经活动(RSNA)和肾上腺交感神经活动(AdSNA)的变化。股动脉放血,在10min内使平均动脉压(MAP)下降至5.3kPa。失血过程中RSNA先兴奋后抑制,AdSNA则一直呈兴奋反应,这反应可由动脉压力感受器去神经而消失。失血前和失血后切断迷走神经均可翻转失血引起的RSNA抑制,但不能阻断AdSNA的兴奋反应。静脉注射纳洛酮和延髓腹外侧头端(RVLM)微量注射纳洛酮可翻转失血引起的RSNA抑制,但对AdSNA兴奋反应无显著影响。失血引起心率(HR)和RSNA一样,但不能为纳洛酮所反转。上述结果表明:失血引起的RSNA抑制是由迷走神经传入纤维和阿片肽(尤其是RVLM中的阿片肽)参与所致,而AdSNA的兴奋则与动脉压力感受器传入纤维有关。     

Pancreatic polypeptide-like material in nerves and endocrine cells of the rat

A region-specific antiserum (AbS11) raised against the carboxyl-terminal hexapeptide of pancreatic polypeptide has been employed to measure rat pancreatic polypeptide specifically and to demonstrate apparent immunoreactivity in nerves and in endocrine cells outside the pancreas. The concentration of pancreatic polypeptide in the head of the rat pancreas measured with AbS11 (176 +/- 47 pmol/g) was 750 fold higher than that measured with a conventional anti-bPP antiserum (0.23 +/- 0.08 pmol/g). Column chromatographs of rat pancreatic extracts demonstrated two peaks of immunoreactivity both eluting after the porcine pancreatic polypeptide standard. AbS11 also detected specific immunoreactivity in rat brain (470 fmol/g) which went undetected in convention assays. Although immunohistochemical studies with AbS11 and human pancreatic polypeptide antiserum demonstrated immunoreactivity in the same population of pancreatic endocrine cells, immunoreactive nerve fibres and enteroglucagon cells were only demonstrable with AbS11. These studies demonstrate that the carboxyl terminus of rat pancreatic polypeptide is immunochemically similar to that of higher mammals. Furthermore, neural and extrapancreatic endocrine variants of this peptide share an immunochemical determinant contained within the carboxyl-terminal hexapeptide.     

Fine structure and peroxidatic activity of rat blood monocytes

Summary Transmission and scanning electron microscopy of the rat epithalamus shows a regional variation in the distribution of Supraependymal nerves (SN) which correlates well with Supraependymal yellow fluorescence reported by Richards et al. (1974). The medial habenular nucleus, the intercommissural and suprahabenular recesses, the habenular commissure and the fibrae periventriculares thalami have the greatest density of SN/100 m of ependymal surface. The floor of the suprahabenular and intercommissural recesses is covered by non-ciliated ependyma.The significance of these findings is discussed with respect to (1) a direct functional relationship of SN with ependyma, and (2) a possible participation of the non-ciliated ependyma of the suprahabenular and intercommissural recesses in secretory activity whereby the CSF serves as a vehicle for neuroendocrine communication.The author thanks Drs. Sanford Palay, Milton Brightman, and Constantino Sotelo for their advice in the preparation of nervous tissue for electron microscopy; Dr. Gunter Bahr for the use of scanning electron microscopy facilities; and Messrs. Cyril Wingfield and Walter Engler and Mrs. Michie Vane for their technical support     

Stimulation-depletion of serotonin and noradrenaline from vesicles of sympathetic nerves in the pineal gland of the rat

Summary The pineal gland of the rat receives a rich nervous supply originating from the superior cervical ganglia. These fibers contain serotonin in addition to their neurotransmitter, noradrenaline. Cytochemical studies at the ultrastructural level have shown that both amines are present in the cores of the granular vesicles that are characteristic of these nerves. It is presently shown that the bilateral electrical stimulation of the preganglionic fibers innervating the ganglia markedly reduces the number of small sites reacting cytochemically for both noradrenaline and serotonin, these sites corresponding to the cores of small granular vesicles, while the larger reactive sites (cores of large vesicles) remain unaltered. The vesicles are retained in nerve terminals after stimulation, as observed in conventionally processed tissues, although with altered sizes and shapes. Apart from these cytochemical and structural changes, nerve stimulation also reduces the endogenous noradrenaline content of the pineal gland. Thus, both noradrenaline and serotonin are released from their storage sites in pineal sympathetic nerves after electrical stimulation in vivo. This suggests the possibility that several substances with presumed transmitter or modulatory functions might be simultaneously released by nerve impulses from a given nerve terminal.     

Graphic-digitizer analysis of axon spectra in ethmoidal and lingual branches of the trigeminal nerve

Summary Sections were removed from the lingual and ethmoidal nerves of cats and histologically prepared, and the fibers were analyzed under the light microscope. Neural dimensions were measured by a new technique, employing a graphic digitizer and computer. The outline of a neural structure was traced with the digitizer pen, and the total number of axons, their cross-sectional areas, shapes, diameter spectra, and locations within the nerve were calculated.Both nerves had unimodal axon spectra with the peak between 2 and 6 m diameter. Differences in axon composition occurred over the diameter range of 9 to 20 ; the lingual nerve had many axons in this range, the ethmoidal nerve only a few. The total number of myelinated axons was near 4000 in the lingual nerve, near 1400 in the ethmoidal nerve; only the latter had many large-sized Remak bundles (containing C-fibers). Most myelinated axons were not perfectly circular but exhibited various degrees of distortion.This investigation was supported by NIH grants DE 02152 and DE 00248. The use of the graphic digitizer was made possible through NIH grant FR 00374, and the use of the ultramicrotome through NIH grant AM 13182.     

Characterization of substance P-like immunoreactivity in peripheral sensory nerves and enteric nerves by high pressure liquid chromatography and radioimmunoassay

Material exhibiting immunoreactivity for substance P in enteric nerves, obtained from the myenteric plexus of the guinea pig small intestine, and in the peripheral ends of sensory nerves of the ureter, atrium and superior mesenteric artery, was characterized by separation by high pressure liquid chromatography, and quantified by radioimmunoassay of fractions collected from the chromatograph. Capsaicin, which depletes substance P-like immunoreactivity from sensory, but not from other substance P-containing nerves, reduced the content of substance P-like immunoreactivity in ureter, atrium and superior mesenteric artery by more than 99.5%, whereas the reduction in immunoreactive material in the myenteric plexus was less than 10%. Separation of extracts of myenteric plexus, ureter and atrium on a reversed-phase column gave major peaks corresponding to authentic substance P and minor peaks that coeluted with oxidized substance P. If the extracts were oxidized with hydrogen peroxide before chromatography, all the immunoreactivity was found in the peak corresponding to oxidized substance P. In the superior mesenteric artery extracts, in addition to the components corresponding to substance P and its oxidized derivative, there was a small intermediate peak that has yet to be identified. Physalaemin, which has been suggested to be present in mammalian nerves, was not detectable in any of the extracts. It is concluded that both enteric nerves and the peripheral processes of sensory nerves which show immunoreactivity for substance P in this species contain the authentic peptide.     

Evidence for exclusive adrenergic innervation of feather muscles (mm. pennati) in the chicken

Summary Feather follicles in the avian skin are interconnected by well-defined bundles of smooth muscle cells, which are responsible for the erection and depression of feathers and thus play an important role in thermoregulation. The depressing and erecting muscle bundles were found to receive a very dense supply of unmyelinated nerve fibres that displayed ultrastructural and histochemical characteristics of noradrenergic axons (formaldehyde- and glyoxylic acid-induced catecholamine fluorescence; uptake to 5-hydroxydopamine). No nerve fibres were encountered showing histochemical acetylcholinesterase activity. There was no indication of the presence of peptidergic or purinergic nerve endings.The neuromuscular space usually ranged from 40–60 nm in width and contained a basal lamina. Occasionally, this space was reduced to approximately 20 nm. At such close neuromuscular contacts a basal lamina was lacking, and focal densities beneath the pre- and postsynaptic plasma membrane were observed. Since no gap junctions between muscle cells were detected, the dense supply with noradrenergic nerve fibres indicates a high amount of directly innervated smooth muscle cells.An additional finding of the present study was the observation that high local concentrations of 5-hydroxydopamine led to degeneration of noradrenergic nerve endings.Supported by a grant from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Dr. 91)     

A histochemical study on the innervation of the cerebral blood vessels in bats

Summary The adrenergic and cholinergic nerves innervating the cerebral blood vessels of four species of Japanese chiropterids (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum, Murina leucogaster, Vespertilio superans and Miniopterus Schreibersi) have been investigated using specific histochemical techniques. In all these species of bats arteries of the internal carotid system are poorly developed, whereas those of the vertebro-basilar system are well developed. The adrenergic and cholinergic nerves innervating these cerebral arteries, however, all originate from the stem nerve bundles entering the cranial cavity along the internal carotid artery. Both nerve plexuses are among the densest of any vertebrate species so far investigated. Adrenergic nerve plexuses are usually composed of complicated meshworks of fine fibres, while cholinergic ones are composed of rather longitudinally arranging meshworks of both thick and thin fibres, exhibiting a very high acetylcholinesterase activity. Small parenchymal arteries and arterioles are also dually innervated by adrenergic and cholinergic nerve fibres of peripheral origin. Intracerebral capillaries, on the other hand, are in several places directly connected with both adrenergic and cholinergic fibres of parenchymal origin. Capillaries in the cerebral and cerebellar cortices, diencephalon and cochlear nucleus in V. superans exhibit a heavy non-nervous acetylcholinesterase activity in their walls, but in R.ferrumequinum and M. schreibersi, the response is weak or negative, except for that in the cochlear nucleus.     

Distribution of indolealkylamine nerve terminals in the ventricles of the rat brain

Summary The density, distribution and the pharmacologically produced changes of a formaldehyde-induced yellow supra-ependymal fluorescence in the lateral and third ventricles and in the aqueduct of the rat brain are described. The fluorescence consists of small spots or a thin spotted layer just above the ependymal cells. The highest fluorescence densities occur in the areas near the tela chorioidea of the third ventricle and in the interventricular foramen. A high to moderate density occurs in the lateral ventricles and in the aqueduct. Little or no fluorescence is seen above the hypothalamic areas bordering the third ventricle. The fluorescence rapidly fades upon irradiation with violet-blue light, disappears after treatment of the rats with reserpine or p-chlorophenylalanine, is intensified after nialamide or reserpine + nialamide, and does not change after -methyl-p-tyrosine.Electron microscopically supra-ependymal varicose nerves containing small (500 Å) and large (1000 Å) vesicles in the varicosities are observed in areas with supra-ependymal yellow fluorescence. A fine-structural cytochemical technique reveals the presence of a specific, chromaffine, reserpine-sensitive electron dense core in the small and large vesicles.The conclusion is drawn that a characteristically distributed population of supra-ependymal efferent nerve terminals containing an indolealkylamine, most probably 5-hydroxytryptamine, exists in the cerebral ventricles of the rat brain.The skilful assistance of Mr. R. Wybrecht and Mrs. G. Gschwind is gratefully acknowledged.     

Terminal axons ensheathed in smooth muscle cells of the vas deferens

Summary The ultrastructure of axon profiles which were completely ensheathed in smooth muscle cells has been described in the guinea pig, mouse and rat vas deferens. The axon profiles contained both small (500 Å) and large (1,000 Å) vesicles, neurotubules and mitochondria. Adrenergic axons were clearly identified within smooth muscle cells after treatment of the tissue with 5-or 6-hydroxydopamine, drugs which cause specific ultrastructural changes in adrenergic axons. The ensheathed axons were separated from the surrounding muscle cells by narrow, regular gaps, usually about 100–300 Å wide. Schwann cells seldom accompanied the ensheathed axons. Axons often penetrated the muscle cells in the nuclear region and profiles were sometimes observed among the perinuclear organelles.