Postnatal rat sympathetic neurons in culture. I. A comparison with embryonic neurons

1979 ◽  
Vol 42 (5) ◽  
pp. 1410-1425 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Wakshull ◽  
M. I. Johnson ◽  
H. Burton
Keyword(s):  
Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Sympathetic Neurons ◽  
Gamma Aminobutyric Acid ◽  
Potential Amplitude ◽  
Cervical Ganglion ◽  
Dissociated Cell Culture ◽  
Ganglion Neurons ◽  
Embryonic Neurons

1. A morphological and physiological comparison was made between embryonically and postnatally derived superior cervical ganglion neurons (SCGN) grown in dissociated cell culture. It was found that while morphologically distinct, the physiological properties of the postnatal neurons were the same as their embryonic counterparts. 2. Intracellular injection of horseradish peroxidase (HPR) demonstrated that SCGN from any age of animal elaborated two basic types of processes, although the pattern of process ramification was unique for each neuron. The two types of proceses were 1) the large, smooth, rapidly tapering; and 2) the thin, nontapering variety, which often contained varicosities along its length. It is suggested that the former are dendritic in function, while the latter act as axons. 3. A difference was noted in somal size and the number of primary processes extended by the embryonic and postnatal neurons, with the latter more closely resembling the in vivo morphology. 4. Resting potentials and action-potential amplitudes of postnatal SCGN were comparable to those found previously for embryonic SCGN in vitro. 5. Iontophoretic application of putative neurotransmitter substances revealed the presence of acetylcholine receptors (AChR) on both embryonic and postnatal SCGN. Picrotoxin-sensitive depolarizing responses to iontophoresed gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) was seen on a few embryonic neurons, but not on the older cells. No responses were detected when norepinephrine (NE), glutamate, cAMP, substance P, or dopamine were applied to the SCGN of either age group. 6. Synatpic interaction between postnatal SCGN were found at an earlier in vitro age (12 days) than was the case for embryonic neurons (20 days). 7. Synaptic transmission was found to be chemical in nature. This was shown by 1) a dependence on external Ca2+ concentrations; 2) steplike fluctuations in synpatic potential amplitude, and 3) a variation in potential amplitude with changes in membrane potential. 8. It is concluded that the postnatal SCGN are able to survive in culture even when taken from animals up to 12.5 wk old. The elaboration of processes is in many ways strikingly similar to sympathetic neurons in the animal, and they are able to form functional synaptic interactions.

Multiple mechanisms regulate sympathetic neuronal phenotype

Development ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 121 (8) ◽  
pp. 2361-2371
Author(s):  
A.K. Hall ◽  
S.E. MacPhedran
Keyword(s):  
Sympathetic Neurons ◽  
Intrinsic Property ◽  
Sympathetic Ganglia ◽  
Environmental Cues ◽  
Peripheral Target ◽  
Neuronal Phenotype ◽  
Adult Rat ◽  
Cervical Ganglion

Adult rat sympathetic neurons can possess specific neuropeptides utilized as cotransmitters along with norepinephrine, but the factors that regulate their expression remain unknown. 60% of adult rat superior cervical ganglion (SCG) neurons express neuropeptide Y (NPY) in vivo. To determine whether the restricted expression was an intrinsic property of sympathetic ganglia, we examined if embryonic sympathetic precursors gave rise to NPY immunoreactive (-IR) neurons in vitro. After one week in culture, 60% of neurons derived from the E14.5 rat SCG were NPY-IR. Thus, ganglia isolated before peripheral target contact or preganglionic innervation were capable of regulating NPY expression both in the number of neurons with NPY and in the developmental timing of NPY expression. To determine if the restricted expression of NPY was a reflection of neuroblasts committed to an NPY fate, SCG precursors were labeled with a replication incompetent retrovirus carrying lacZ, and NPY expression in lacZ-labeled clones examined after one week. Two thirds of neuronal clones obtained were uniformly NPY-IR; that is, all neurons in a clone either possessed or lacked NPY. One-third of the neuronal clones were mixed and contained both neurons with and without NPY. We provide a novel demonstration that both lineage and environmental cues contribute to neuropeptide phenotype.

scholarly journals Changes in the number of chick ciliary ganglion neuron processes with time in cell culture.

1987 ◽  
Vol 104 (2) ◽  
pp. 363-370 ◽  
Author(s):  
L W Role ◽  
G D Fischbach
Keyword(s):  
Cell Culture ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Culture Conditions ◽  
Ciliary Ganglion ◽  
Intact Cells ◽  
Dissociated Cell Culture ◽  
Ciliary Ganglion Neurons ◽  
Ganglion Neurons

The purpose of this study was to describe the shape of chick ciliary ganglion neurons dissociated from embryonic day 8 or 9 ganglia and maintained in vitro. Most of the neurons were multipolar during the first three days after plating, with an average of 6.0 processes extending directly from the cell body. The neurons became unipolar with time. The remaining primary process accounted for greater than 90% of the total neuritic arbor. This striking change in morphology was not due to the selective loss of multipolar cells, or to an obvious decline in the health of apparently intact cells. The retraction of processes was neither prevented nor promoted by the presence of embryonic muscle cells. Process pruning occurred to the same extent and over the same time course whether the cells were plated on a monolayer of embryonic myotubes or on a layer of lysed fibroblasts. Process retraction is not an inevitable consequence of our culture conditions. Motoneurons dissociated from embryonic spinal cords remained multipolar over the same period of time. We conclude that ciliary ganglion neurons breed true in dissociated cell culture in that the multipolar-unipolar transition reflects their normal, in vivo, developmental program.

Postnatal rat sympathetic neurons in culture. II. Synaptic transmission by postnatal neurons

1979 ◽  
Vol 42 (5) ◽  
pp. 1426-1436 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Wakshull ◽  
M. I. Johnson ◽  
H. Burton
Keyword(s):  
Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Synaptic Transmission ◽  
Sympathetic Neurons ◽  
Preceding Paper ◽  
Blocking Agent ◽  
Culture Conditions ◽  
Cervical Ganglion ◽  
Dissociated Cell Culture ◽  
Ganglion Neurons ◽  
Neurotransmitter Plasticity

1. It was shown in the preceding paper that postnatally derived rat superior cervical ganglion neurons (SCGN) will grow in dissociated cell culture and form functional synaptic connections with each other. In this report, synaptic transmission by the postnatal SCGN is detailed. 2. Synaptic interactions between SCGN were blocked by the nicotinic cholinergic antagonist hexamathonium (C-6), indicating that acetylcholine was the transmitter substance used by these neurons. This was found to be the case even for neurons taken from 12.5-wk-old animals. 3. In a few cases, the beta-adrenergic blocking agent, propranolol, was found to block synaptic potentials, suggesting that a catecholamine might be involved in the transmission process. The possible mechanisms of this involvement are discussed. 4. SCGN taken from up to 10-wk-old rats were able to form functional synaptic contacts with cocultured skeletal muscle cells. These interactions were sensitive to low external Ca2+ and to 1--2 microM d-tubocurarine (d-TC). 5. It is concluded that even adult SCGN retain a certain amount of neurotransmitter "plasticity" when grown under appropriate culture conditions. From the data on the neuron-neuron and SCGN-skeletal muscle interactions, it is suggested that a matching of presynaptic transmitter with postsynaptic receptor is a sufficient condition for the formation of functional nerve-target interactions.

scholarly journals Persistence of an amine uptake system in cultured rat sympathetic neurons which use acetylcholine as their transmitter.

1978 ◽  
Vol 79 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
E Wakshull ◽  
M I Johnson ◽  
H Burton
Keyword(s):  
Sympathetic Neurons ◽  
Maximum Velocity ◽  
Uptake System ◽  
Supporting Cells ◽  
Synaptic Interactions ◽  
Cervical Ganglion ◽  
Amine Uptake ◽  
Ganglion Neurons ◽  
Silver Grains

Cultures of dissociated rat superior cervical ganglion neurons (SCGN) were treated with the sympatholytic agent, guanethidine. When treated within the first couple of weeks in vitro, the neurons were rapidly destroyed. The cells grew less susceptible to the toxic effects of guanethidine with age in vitro. Moreover, the apparent affinity, Km, of the transport molecule for norepinephrine (NE) and guanethidine remained essentially unchanged between 2 and 7 wk in culture, as did the maximum velocity of transport (Vmax). This is at a time when previous studies have shown these neurons to be using acetylcholine (ACh) as their neurotransmitter. Cultures which were grown without supporting cells and from which cholinergic synaptic interactions were recorded physiologically were processed for autoradiography after incubation with [3H]NE. All cell bodies and processes seen had silver grains accumulated over them. These experiments show that sympathetic neurons in vitro maintain their amine uptake system relatively unchanged, even though they use ACh as their transmitter. The implications of these findings are discussed.

GDNF and neurturin are target-derived factors essential for cranial parasympathetic neuron development

Development ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 128 (19) ◽  
pp. 3773-3782 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eri Hashino ◽  
Marlene Shero ◽  
Dirk Junghans ◽  
Hermann Rohrer ◽  
Jeffrey Milbrandt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Striate Muscle ◽  
Ciliary Ganglion ◽  
Neuron Development ◽  
Down Regulation ◽  
Eye Muscle ◽  
Ciliary Ganglion Neurons ◽  
Ganglion Neurons ◽  
Parasympathetic Neuron

During development, parasympathetic ciliary ganglion neurons arise from the neural crest and establish synaptic contacts on smooth and striate muscle in the eye. The factors that promote the ciliary ganglion pioneer axons to grow toward their targets have yet to be determined. Here, we show that glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) and neurturin (NRTN) constitute target-derived factors for developing ciliary ganglion neurons. Both GDNF and NRTN are secreted from eye muscle located in the target and trajectory pathway of ciliary ganglion pioneer axons during the period of target innervation. After this period, however, the synthesis of GDNF declines markedly, while that of NRTN is maintained throughout the cell death period. Furthermore, both in vitro and in vivo function-blocking of GDNF at early embryonic ages almost entirely suppresses ciliary axon outgrowth. These results demonstrate that target-derived GDNF is necessary for ciliary ganglion neurons to innervate ciliary muscle in the eye. Since the down-regulation of GDNF in the eye is accompanied by down-regulation of GFRα1 and Ret, but not of GFRα2, in innervating ciliary ganglion neurons, the results also suggest that target-derived GDNF regulates the expression of its high-affinity coreceptors.

scholarly journals Vascular-dependent effects of elevated glucose on postganglionic sympathetic neurons

2011 ◽  
Vol 300 (4) ◽  
pp. H1386-H1392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah H. Damon
Keyword(s):  
Vascular Function ◽  
Sympathetic Neurons ◽  
Vascular Complications ◽  
Sympathetic Nerves ◽  
T Test ◽  
Neuronal Cultures ◽  
Elevated Glucose ◽  
Low Glucose

Perivascular sympathetic nerves are important determinants of vascular function that are likely to contribute to vascular complications associated with hyperglycemia and diabetes. The present study tested the hypothesis that glucose modulates perivascular sympathetic nerves by studying the effects of 7 days of hyperglycemia on norepinephrine (NE) synthesis [tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)], release, and uptake. Direct and vascular-dependent effects were studied in vitro in neuronal and neurovascular cultures. Effects were also studied in vivo in rats made hyperglycemic (blood glucose >296 mg/dl) with streptozotocin (50 mg/kg). In neuronal cultures, TH and NE uptake measured in neurons grown in high glucose (HG; 25 mM) were less than that in neurons grown in low glucose (LG; 5 mM) ( P < 0.05; n = 4 and 6, respectively). In neurovascular cultures, elevated glucose did not affect TH or NE uptake, but it increased NE release. Release from neurovascular cultures grown in HG (1.8 ± 0.2%; n = 5) was greater than that from cultures grown in LG (0.37 ± 0.28%; n = 5; P < 0.05; unpaired t-test). In vivo, elevated glucose did not affect TH or NE uptake, but it increased NE release. Release in hyperglycemic animals (9.4 + 1.1%; n = 6) was greater than that in control animals (5.39 + 1.1%; n = 6; P < 0.05; unpaired t-test). These data identify a novel vascular-dependent effect of elevated glucose on postganglionic sympathetic neurons that is likely to affect the function of perivascular sympathetic nerves and thereby affect vascular function.

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