Nerve growth factor actions on the brain
We examined the effect of the trophic protein, nerve growth factor (NGF), on cultures of fetal rat neostriatum and basal forebrain-medial septal area (BF-MS) to define its role in brain development. Treatment of cultures with NGF resulted in an increase in the specific activity of the cholinergic enzyme choline acetyltransferase (CAT) in both brain areas. CAT was immunocytochemically localized to neurons. In the BF-MS, NGF treatment elicited a marked increase in staining intensity and an apparent increase in the number of CAT-positive neurons. Moreover, treatment of BF-MS cultures with NGF increased the activity of acetylcholinesterase, suggesting that the cholinergic neuron as a whole was affected. To begin defining mechanisms of action of NGF in the BF-MS, we detected NGF receptors by two independent methods. Receptors were localized to two different cellular populations: neuron-like cells, and non-neuron-like cells. Dissociation studies with ({sup 125}I)NGF suggested that high affinity receptors were localized to the neuron-like population. Only low-affinity receptors were localized to the non-neuron-like cells. Moreover, employing combined immunocytochemistry and ({sup 125}I)NGF autoradiography, we detected a subpopulation of CAT-containing neutrons that exhibited high-affinity binding. Unexpectedly, a gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-containing cell group also expressed high affinity binding. However, only subsets of cholinergic or GABA neurons expressed high-affinity biding, suggesting that these transmitter populations are composed of differentially response subpopulations.
- Research Organization:
- Cornell Univ., New York, NY (USA). Medical Coll.
- OSTI ID:
- 6531989
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
AMINO ACIDS
AMINOBUTYRIC ACID
ANIMALS
AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM AGENTS
AUTORADIOGRAPHY
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BIOCHEMICAL REACTION KINETICS
BIOLOGICAL LOCALIZATION
BODY
BRAIN
CARBOXYLIC ACIDS
CELL DIFFERENTIATION
CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DRUGS
ELECTRON CAPTURE RADIOISOTOPES
ENZYME ACTIVITY
ENZYMES
FETUSES
GROWTH FACTORS
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
IODINE 125
IODINE ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
KINETICS
MAMMALS
MEMBRANE PROTEINS
MITOGENS
NERVES
NERVOUS SYSTEM
NEUROREGULATORS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
ORGANIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANS
PROTEINS
RADIOISOTOPES
RATS
REACTION KINETICS
RECEPTORS
RODENTS
TRANSFERASES
VERTEBRATES