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Catecholamine-synthesizing enzymes and neuropeptides in rat heart epicardial ganglia; an immunohistochemical study

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Summary

The subepicardial atrial ganglia of rat hearts were examined using immunohistochemical techniques and antibodies against the catecholamine-synthetic enzymes tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and dopamine-β-hydroxylase (DBH), and the neuropeptides substance P (SP), calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), neuropeptide Y (NPY), vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) and met-5-enkephalin (ENK). Some of the ganglion cells present in the ganglia exhibited DBH-like immunoreactivity (LI) and NPY-LI, whilst these cells nerver exhibited TH-, VIP-, CGRP-, SP- or ENK-LI. Groups of small cells exhibiting an intense TH-LI, corresponding to cells referred to as catecholamine-containing cells and sometimes small intensely fluorescent cells in the literature, were observed in the ganglia. A subpopulation of these cells exhibited immunoreactivity to one of the neuropeptides tested, namely SP. Only a few of the cells showing TH-LI displayed DBH-LI. Nerve fibres showing SP-, CGRP-, DBH- and TH-LI were present in the ganglia; some of these fibres being closely associated with the ganglion cells or with the cells showing TH-LI. The observations provide new information on the catecholaminesynthetic enzyme/neuropeptide expression of the ganglion and catecholamine-containing cells and of the associated nerve fibres of rat heart subepicardial ganglia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anatomy, University of Umeå, S-901 87, Umeå, Sweden

    S. Forsgren

  2. Laboratoire d'Energétique et de Cardiologie Cellulaire, INSERM, Faculté de Pharmacie, 7 bd Jeanne d'Arc 21033, Dijon, France

    M. Moravec & J. Moravec

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  1. S. Forsgren
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  2. M. Moravec
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  3. J. Moravec
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Forsgren, S., Moravec, M. & Moravec, J. Catecholamine-synthesizing enzymes and neuropeptides in rat heart epicardial ganglia; an immunohistochemical study. Histochem J 22, 667–676 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01047451

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01047451

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