Expression of the capacity to release (/sup 3/H)norepinephrine by neural crest cultures

Journal Article · Thu Sep 01 00:00:00 EDT 1983 · J. Neurosci.; (United States)

OSTI ID:5528216

Maxwell, G D; Sietz, P D

Cultures of trunk neural crest cells from quail embryos were tested for their ability to release (/sup 3/H)norepinephrine ((/sup 3/H)NE) in response to depolarization. After 7 days in vitro, exposure of the cultures to either the alkaloid veratridine or 40 mM K+ results in the evoked release of (/sup 3/H)NE. The release evoked by veratridine is blocked in the presence of tetrodotoxin. The release evoked by increased K+ is blocked by the calcium antagonist cobalt. Release in response to the nicotinic cholinergic agonist 1,1-dimethyl-4-phenylpiperazine was also observed. The amount of evoked release is highly correlated with the number of histochemically demonstrable catecholamine-containing cells in a given culture. Autoradiography reveals that the radioactivity taken up by these cultures is located in a subpopulation of cells whose morphology resembles that of the histochemically detectable catecholamine-containing cell population. Whereas capacity for the release of (/sup 3/H) NE is readily detectable after 7 days in vitro, it is detectable only with difficulty after 4 days in vitro. There is a greater than 6-fold increase in uptake capacity over the period of 4 to 7 days in vitro. These results demonstrate that neural crest cultures grown without their normal synaptic inputs or targets can exhibit the capacity for stimulus secretion coupling characteristic of synaptic neurotransmitter release.

• Research Organization: Department of Anatomy, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington
• OSTI ID: 5528216
• Journal Information: J. Neurosci.; (United States), Vol. 3:9
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
NERVE CELLS
AUTORADIOGRAPHY
NORADRENALINE
BIRDS
CELL CULTURES
COBALT
EMBRYOS
ONTOGENESIS
PARASYMPATHOMIMETICS
TRACER TECHNIQUES
TRITIUM COMPOUNDS
ADRENAL HORMONES
ANIMAL CELLS
ANIMALS
AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM AGENTS
CARDIOTONICS
CARDIOVASCULAR AGENTS
DRUGS
ELEMENTS
HORMONES
ISOTOPE APPLICATIONS
LABELLED COMPOUNDS
METALS
NEUROREGULATORS
SOMATIC CELLS
STEROID HORMONES
SYMPATHOMIMETICS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
VERTEBRATES
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