Recovery of choline acetyltransferase activity in the rat urinary bladder deprived of half of its innervation

In the urinary bladder of the rat, partially denervated by unilateral removal of the pelvic ganglion 3 days in advance, the activity of the acetylcholine-forming enzyme, choline acetyltransferase, measured by a radiolabelling method, was reduced to 58% of the control. A gain in enzyme activity of 28% was found to have occurred when the bladders were examined 25 days postoperatively; the main part of this increase took place during the period 3 to 6 days after the operation and beyond 25 days no further gain in enzyme activity was found. The present findings are compared with previous observations of a transient supersensitivity and an increased motor response to electrical stimulation of the intact pelvic nerve of such a partially denervated bladder.