Survival and immunogenicity of dissociated allogeneic fetal neural dopamine-rich grafts when implanted into the brains of adult mice

Summary The survival of grafts of dissociated allogeneic fetal neural dopamine (DA) rich tissue in the striatum has been studied after transplantation between inbred strains of mice differing at defined immunogenetical loci between donor and recipient. Six to 7 weeks and 15 weeks after grafting, surviving grafted DA neurons were found in the brains of all the recipients, albeit with a large variation in numbers, located either within the striatum or within the adjacent lateral ventricle. The mean number of surviving DA neurons did not differ between the syngeneic controls and the histoincompatible donor-host combinations, and there was no difference in survival between grafts that differed at single or multiple major histocompatibility complex (MHC) loci, and those that differed at multiple non-MHC loci. The amount of inflammatory cells in the graft area did not differ between the groups, and none of the animals showed massive infiltration of inflammatory cells. The in situ immunogenicity of the grafted neural tissue after intracerebral implantation was monitored by means of Simonsen's alloimmunization test, at 6–7 weeks after transplantation, which provides a sensitive measure primarily of the cellular immunological response. Most, but not all, graft recipients showed immunization with a Spleen Index (S.I.) close to that seen in recipients of an orthotopical skin graft of the same histoincompatibility combination. In contrast to the prolonged survival of the intracerebral neural transplants, none of the skin grafts survived longer than 3 weeks, thus demonstrating the immunologically privileged status of the brain. We conclude that intracerebrally grafted allogeneic neural tissue is capable of provoking a cellular immune response. Despite host immunization, however, the dissociated fetal neural allografts survived for at least 15 weeks without any overt signs of rejection, regardless of the donor-host combination used.     

益精养血方对帕金森病大鼠多巴胺能神经元Caspase-3表达的影响

目的研究益精养血方对帕金森病(Parkinson's disease,PD)大鼠多巴胺能神经元Caspase-3表达的影响。方法将微量6-羟多巴胺(6-OHDA)立体定向注射于SD大鼠中脑右侧黑质以建立大鼠帕金森病模型,将造模成功的实验动物随机分为模型组、实验(中药)组,每组6只;另纳入6只正常大鼠为正常组。正常组和模型组大鼠生理盐水灌胃,实验组大鼠益精养血方灌胃,各30天。灌胃结束两周后进行行为学检测,免疫组织化学方法观测黑质酪氨酸羟化酶(TH)、Caspase-3的表达。结果实验组大鼠的旋转圈数比治疗前明显减少(P<0.05),实验组损毁侧与健侧黑质TH阳性细胞数量百分比较模型组显著提高(P<0.05),实验组损毁侧黑质Caspase-3表达的OD值比模型组显著降低(P<0.05)。结论益精养血方可使帕金森病大鼠多巴胺能神经元Caspase-3的表达降低,明显抑制神经细胞凋亡。     

Amphetamine injections into the nucleus accumbens affect neither acquisition/expression of conditioned fear nor baseline startle response

The acoustic startle response is enhanced during states of fear and attenuated during pleasant ones. Our question was whether pharmacological stimulation of the reward system disrupts the learning and retrieval of conditioned fear as measured by fear-potentiated startle. We therefore injected the dopamine agonist amphetamine into the nucleus accumbens (NAC) immediately before either acquisition or expression of conditioned fear and measured the effect of these injections on fear-potentiated startle and baseline startle response. This study clearly showed that amphetamine injections into the NAC had no effect on baseline startle amplitude and acquisition/expression of conditioned fear. In contrast, amphetamine injections into the nucleus accumbens clearly enhanced spontaneous motor activity. These results suggest that dopamine within the NAC is not involved in modulation of fear-potentiated startle and baseline startle.     

休克大鼠小肠微循环灌流量和血清TNF的变化及多巴胺的作用

在39只失血性休克大鼠中，用激光多普勒微循环血流计及ELISA法测定静脉注射多巴胺前后小肠微循环增流量及血清TNF浓度的变化。结果发现随休克发展，小肠微循环血液灌流量进行性减少，TNF浓度升高。多巴胺（40μg／100gB．W．）治疗可增加小肠微循环血液油流量和降低血清TNF浓度。两者间呈显著性相关（r＝0．897，P＜0．01）。作者认为，多巴胺通过增加小肠微循环血液灌流量，改善肠壁屏障功能，减少内毒素入血，从而降低血清TNF浓度，保护了脏器功能和减轻细胞损伤。     

Chemical neuromodulation of frontal-executive functions in humans and other animals

Neuromodulation of frontal-executive function is reviewed in the context of experiments on rats, monkeys and human subjects. The different functions of the chemically identified systems of the reticular core are analysed from the perspective of their possible different interactions with the prefrontal cortex. The role of dopamine in spatial working memory is reviewed, taking account of its deleterious as well as facilitatory effects. Baseline-dependent effects of dopaminergic manipulation are described in rats on an attentional task, including evidence of enhanced function following infusions of D1 receptor agonists into the prefrontal cortex. The precise nature of the cognitive task under study is shown to be a powerful determinant of the effects of mesofrontal dopamine depletion in monkeys. Parallels are identified in human subjects receiving drugs such as the indirect catecholamine agonists L-dopa, methylphenidate and the dopamine D2 receptor blocker sulpiride. The effects of these drugs on different types of cognitive function sensitive to frontal lobe dysfunction are contrasted with those of a manipulation of 5-HT function, dietary tryptophan depletion. Hypotheses are advanced that accord the ascending systems a greater deal of specificity in modulating prefrontal cortical function than has hitherto been entertained, and clinical and theoretical implications of this hypothesis are discussed.     

Dorsal raphé stimulation modifies striatal-evoked antidromic invasion of nigral dopaminergic neurons in vivo

Summary Extracellular single unit recordings were obtained from antidromically identified nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons in anesthetized rats to determine the effects of dorsal raphé stimulation on the somatodendritic excitability of substantia nigra dopaminergic neurons. Stimulation of the dorsal raphé with a brief train of pulses delivered 7–2 ms prior to the neostriatal-evoked antidromic response significantly reduced the proportion of neostriatal-evoked antidromic responses that consisted of both initial segment and somatodendritic components without significantly altering the neostriatal-evoked post-stimulus inhibitory period. Raphé stimulation alone facilitated post-stimulus neuronal firing in almost half of the cells examined. The raphé-induced decrease in somatodendritic excitability was blocked by the serotonin antagonist, metergoline (0.5–2.0 mg/kg, i.v.), without significantly affecting the rate or pattern of spontaneous activity. The tryptophan hydroxylase inhibitor, parachlorophenylalanine (400 mg/kg, i.p. for three consecutive days), abolished the decrease in somatodendritic excitability following raphé stimulation which could be re-instated by intravenous administration of 5-HTP. The dopamine antagonists haloperidol (25–100 g/kg, i.v.) and sulpiride (10–30 mg/kg, i.v.) also blocked the effects of dorsal raphé stimulation on somatodendritic invasion. These data suggest that in vivo, serotonin liberated from raphé-nigral terminals facilitates the release of dopamine from nigrostriatal dendrites resulting in a local, autoreceptor-mediated reduction in somatodendritic excitability without affecting the spontaneous firing rate and excitability of the neuron as a whole.     

Two distinct receptors operate the cAMP cascade to up-regulate L-type Ca channels

Previously we have reported that serotonin’s (5-hydroxytryptamine or 5-HT) potentiating action on L-type Ca channels is present only in definite neurones from pedal ganglia of the mollusc Helix pomatia [Kostyuk PG, Lu kyanetz EA, Doroshenko PA (1992) Effects of serotonin and cAMP on calcium currents in different nevrones of Helix pomatia. Pflügers Arch 420:9–15]. The potentiation is mediated by the cAMP second messenger system and is triggered by 5-HT₁-like type receptors. To understand the physiological and pharmacological significance of this phenomenon, we analysed the comparative effects of dopamine (DA) and 5-HT on voltage-operated Ca currents (I _ca) in isolated, intracellularly perfused H. pomatia neurones in whole- cell patch-clamp experiments. Two types of effects of DA (1–10 μM) and 5-HT (1–10 μM) on I _ca were observed in different neurones: reversible inhibition (by about 40% and 20% respectively) or reversible potentiation (up to 65% and 40% respectively) of current amplitude. Neurones insensitive to neurotransmitter application were also observed. DA could induce potentiation of I _ca only in the same neurones that were similarly sensitive to 5-HT. However, a similar correlation between inhibitory action of neurotransmitters on I _ca was not observed. The potentiating effects of 5-HT and DA on I _ca were not additive and were mimicked by intracellular cAMP (100 μM) or 20 μg/ml of the catalytic subunit of protein kinase A. We established that the potentiating effects of neurotransmitters were mediated by two distinct receptors, as the DA receptor antagonist ergometrin (1 μM) selectively inhibited the enhancement of I _ca by DA and did not affect the action of 5-HT in the same cell. A similar specificity was observed for the dopaminergic compound, 5-chlortryptamine (10 μM), whereas the classical neuroleptic fluphenazine (10 μM) effectively blocked the 5-HT-evoked effect without significantly changing the action of DA. Methiothepin, an antagonist of 5-HT₁ and 5-HT₂ receptors, blocked both 5-HT-and DA-evoked effects. The results point out a possible convergence of the two different receptors (5-HT₁-like and D₁) on the same cAMP-dependent system of phosphorylation in the up-regulation of L-type Ca channel activity in mollusc neurones. Received: 14 September 1995/Received after revision and accepted: 8 January 1995     

Distribution of cocaine recognition sites in rat brain: In vitro and ex vivo autoradiography with [I]RTI-55

The distribution of binding sites of [¹²⁵I]RTI-55 (3β-(4-iodophenyl)tropan-2β-carboxylic acid methyl ester), a phenyl tropane analog of cocaine, and the selective labelling of the dopamine transporter (DAT) were studied by in vitro and ex vivo autoradiography in the rat whole brain. Recent evidence has shown that RTI-55 binds to not only DAT but also serotonin transporter (5HTT). In the present study, in vitro autoradiography revealed that [¹²⁵I]RTI-55 bound to the olfactory tubercle, the caudate putamen, the accumbens nucleus, the midline and lateral geniculate nuclei of the thalamus, the hypothalamic nuclei, the substantia nigra compact part, the subthalamic nucleus, the ventral tegmental area, the superior colliculus, the dorsal raphe nucleus, and the facial nucleus. Further, in the presence of clomipramine, a selective ligand for 5HTT, [¹²⁵I]RTI-55 binding was remarkably inhibited in the midline and lateral geniculate nuclei of the thalamus, the hypothalamic nuclei, the superior colliculus, the dorsal raphe nucleus, and the facial nucleus, while [¹²⁵I]RTI-55 binding remained in the olfactory tubercle, the caudate putamen, the accumbens nucleus, the substantia nigra compact part, the subthalamic nucleus, and the ventral tegmental area. These findings suggest that [¹²⁵I]RTI-55 binds to 5HTT in the former areas and to DAT in the latter areas. It is therefore concluded that RTI-55 is a suitable ligand for studying the action of cocaine in whole brain regions, including the thalamus, the hypothalamus and the dorsal raphe nucleus, regions in which cocaine is thought to act evoking several neurological effects, e.g., analgesia and elevation of adrenocorticotropic hormone. DAT was also labelled selectively both in vitro and in vivo using [¹²⁵I]RTI-55 combined with clomipramine. Therefore, radiolabelled RTI-55, combined with unlabelled clomipramine, which displaces its binding to 5HTT, also appears to be suitable for the selective imaging of DAT in vivo.     

Regional changes in monoamine metabolism in the aging constant estrous rat

Studies were undertaken to determine levels of monoamines and their metabolites in brain regions in young (3–4 months) normally cycling and old (25–26 month) constant estrous female rats. Dopamine (DA) concentrations were reduced in old rats in the median eminence (ME), medial basal hypothalamus (MBH), preoptic area-anterior hypothalamus (POA-AH) and the striatum. Similarly, concentrations of dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), the major acid metabolite of DA, were reduced significantly in all 4 regions. In the ME, a strong positive correlation was observed between DA and DOPAC concentrations in both young and old rats. Concentrations of norepinephrine (NE) were reduced in old rats in the MBH and POA-AH but not in the ME or striatum. Concentrations of serotonin (5HT) and its major metabolite, 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5HIAA) were generally unchanged with age in all of the regions examined. These studies indicate the age-related regional alterations in DA and 5HT metabolism can be monitored by methods which quantitate monoamines and their metabolites.