Summary
Problems associated with the low intensity and fast fading of the formaldehydeinduced fluorescence of adrenergic nerves in young foetal human and rat gut have been overcome by loading the nerves with a primary catecholamine. This has been achieved by incubating the tissue, before freeze-drying, in Krebs solution containing added noradrenaline or α-methyl-noradrenaline. With this method fluorescent nerves have been revealed at a stage before any were demonstrable by normal procedures.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Burnstock, G., Holman, M. E.: Effect of denervation and of reserpine treatment on transmission at sympathetic nerve endings. J. Physiol. (Lond.) 160, 461–469 (1962).
Enemar, A., Falck, B., Håkanson, R.: Observations on the appearance of norepinephrine in the sympathetic nervous system of the chick embryo. Develop. Biol. 11, 268–283 (1965).
Eränkö, O.: Distribution of fluorescing islets, adrenaline and noradrenaline in the adrenal medulla of the hamster. Acta endocr. (Kbh.) 18, 174–179 (1955).
Esterhuizen, A. C., Graham, J. D. P., Lever, J. D., Spriggs, T. L. B.: Catecholamine and acetyloholinesterase distribution in relation to noradrenaline release. An enzyme histochemical and autoradiographic study on the innervation of the cat nictitating membrane. Brit. J. Pharmacol. 32, 46–56 (1968).
Falck, B.: Observations on the possibilities of the cellular localization of monoamines by a fluorescence method. Acta physiol. scand. 56, Suppl. 197 (1962).
-, Owman, Ch.: A detailed methodological description of the fluorescence method for the cellular demonstration of biogenic monoamines. Acta Univ. Lund. Sect. II, No 7, 1–23 (1965).
Farnebo, L.-O., Malmfors, T.: Histochemical studies on the uptake of noradrenaline and α-methyl-noradrenaline in the perfused rat heart. Europ. J. Pharmacol. 5, 313–320 (1969).
Furness, J. B., McLean, J. R., Burnstock, G.: Distribution of adrenergic nerves and changes in neuromuscular transmission in the mouse vas deferens during post-natal development. Develop. Biol. (in press) (1969).
Gannon, B. J., Burnstock, G.: Excitatory adrenergic innervation of the fish heart. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 29, 765–773 (1969).
Ignarro, L. J., Shideman, F. E.: The requirement of sympathetic innervation for the active transport of norepinephrine by the heart. J. Pharmacol. exp. Ther. 159, 59–65 (1968).
McLean, J. R., Burnstock, G.: Histochemical localization of catecholamines in the urinary bladder of the toad (Bufo marinus). J. Histochem. Cytochem. 14, 538–548 (1966).
Read, J. B., Burnstock, G.: Comparative histochemical studies of adrenergic nerves in the enteric plexuses of vertebrate large intestine. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 27, 505–517 (1968).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
This work was supported by the Australian Research Grants Committee and the National Heart Foundation of Australia. One of us (J. B. R.) was in receipt of a Commonwealth of Australia Postgraduate Award. We thank Prof. C. Wood for the human foetal material obtained, by hysterotomy, at legal terminations of pregnancy.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Read, J.B., Burnstock, G. A method for the localization of adrenergic nerves during early development. Histochemie 20, 197–200 (1969). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00306006
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00306006