scholarly journals The relationship of choline acetyltransferase activity at the neuromuscular junction to changes in muscle mass and function

1974 ◽  
Vol 236 (1) ◽  
pp. 247-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Diamond ◽  
Gary M. Franklin ◽  
Dale Milfay
Author(s):  
Е.И. Захарова ◽  
З.И. Сторожева ◽  
А.Т. Прошин ◽  
М.Ю. Монаков ◽  
А.М. Дудченко

Цель - исследование холинергической синаптической организации функций обучения и памяти у крыс с разными когнитивными способностями. Методы. Крыс обучали на пространственной обстановочной модели в водном лабиринте Морриса. Через 2-3 сут. после окончания тренировок животных декапитировали, из неокортекса и гиппокампа с помощью центрифугирования выделяли субфракции синаптических мембран и синаптоплазмы легких и тяжелых синаптосом. В синаптических субфракциях определяли активность ключевого фермента холинергических нейронов холинацетилтрансферазы (ХАТ). Сравнивали результаты тестирования (время достижения скрытой платформы) и активность фермента у способных и неспособных к обучению крыс. Результаты. Были выявлены: 1) различия в холинергической организации исследованных функций в процессе обучения у способных и неспособных к обучению крыс, в том числе: положительные корреляции активности ХАТ в синапсах проекционных нейронов неокортекса у способных крыс со временем достижения платформы на промежуточных этапах обучения и в синапсах проекционных нейронов гиппокампа у неспособных крыс на позднем этапе обучения; разнонаправленные корреляции активности ХАТ в синапсах, предположительно, интернейронов гиппокампа (фракция тяжелых синаптосом) у способных и неспособных крыс на начальном и позднем этапах обучения; 2) индивидуальность холинергической организации функций на всех этапах обучения. Выводы. Полученные данные свидетельствуют в пользу представлений о специфике холинергической организации функций пространственного обстановочного обучения у крыс с выраженными и слабыми способностями к обучению, а также избирательной роли холинергических интернейронов гиппокампа на исходном этапе обучения и в консолидации памяти. In order to expand the knowledge about neuronal organization of the cognitive functions required for understanding plastic processes in the brain, we investigated the cholinergic synaptic organization of learning and memory functions in rats with different cognitive abilities. Methods. Rats were trained on a contextual situation model in the Morris water maze. At 2-3 days after the end of training, animals were decapitated, and subfractions of synaptic membranes and synaptoplasm of light and heavy synaptosomes were isolated from the cortex and the hippocampus by centrifugation. In synaptic subfractions, activity of the key enzyme of cholinergic neurons, choline acetyltransferase, was measured. We compared the test results (latent period to reach the hidden platform) and the enzyme activity in capable (lower quartile) and incapable of learning rats (upper quartile). Results. The following was found: 1) differences in the cholinergic organization of studied functions in capable and uncapable of learning rats during training, including: positive correlations of choline acetyltransferase activity in synapses of projection neurons in the cortex of capable rats with latency to reach the platform at intermediate stages of training and in the hippocampus ofincapable rats at late stages of training; multidirectional correlations of choline acetyltransferase activity in synapses of hippocampal, presumably, interneurons (heavy synaptosomes) in capable and incapable rats at early and late stages of training; 2) distinctness of the cholinergic organization of functions at all stages of training. Conclusions. The study demonstrated for the first time a specificity of the cholinergic organization of functions in spatial situational learning of rats with strong and poor learning abilities and a selective role of hippocampal cholinergic interneurons at the initial stage of learning and in memory consolidation.


Blood ◽  
1948 ◽  
Vol 3 (7) ◽  
pp. 729-754 ◽  
Author(s):  
WILLIAM N. VALENTINE ◽  
CHARLES G. CRADDOCK ◽  
JOHN S. LAWRENCE

Abstract The hormonal control through the hypophyseo-adrenal cortical system of lymphoid tissue structure and function is an important concept. We cannot at the present time regard that the concept is established fact. Final judgment must await additional work and the clarification of some of the inconsistencies which appear to exist. It seems reasonable that lymphoid tissue is one of the end organs of adrenal cortical hormone and that it may perhaps play a role in the response of the organism to stress. It seems quite clear that the sugar hormone of the adrenal cortex is capable of producing structural alterations in lymphoid tissue. Change in thoracic duct lymphocyte numbers as a result of augmentation in the amount of available adrenal cortical hormone is at present controversial. Experiments in this laboratory have failed to demonstrate it. The production of lymphopenia, at least in some species and possibly in man, by increasing available sugar hormone is supported by some evidence. The exact mechanism of production of lymphopenia is open to question, its relationship to changes in lymphoid tissue structure being one of inference. The converse situation—absolute lympocytosis resulting from deprivation of adrenal cortical hormone—is the subject of controversial reports. At best, it must be admitted that relatively slight alterations from the accepted normal range of lymphocyte values occur in the adrenal insufficient organism. Changes in plasma gamma globulins and antibody titers associated with changes in the amount of available cortical hormone are reported. It should be clarified whether such changes have necessarily resulted from lymphocyte dissolution or are related to other of the variegated actions of adrenal cortical hormone. The relationship of adrenal cortical hormone to lymphoid tissue and lymphocytes and the relationship of the latter to the response of the organism to stress must indeed be complex. It is reasonably well established that the life span of the lymphocyte is very short indeed1,58,22 and each lymphocyte presumably liberates its metabolically important contents within a few hours at the most. If stress continues for any period of time, as often it does, it is difficult to visualize the wisdom of interfering with the production of metabolically vital substances in order to secure the transient benefits of lymphoid tissue dissolution. It is also somewhat difficult to regard as proved that the various changes reported after hormone augmentation or deprivation necessarily represent the normal mechanism by which these factors are regulated and kept within physiologic limits. More investigations are required to answer such questions and to further elucidate the interrelationship of the adrenal cortex and lymphoid tissues.


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