AJP - Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, Vol 252, Issue 1 7-12, Copyright © 1987 by American Physiological Society
Peripheral and brain tissue catecholamine content in intact and anti-NGF-treated fetal sheep
J. A. Schuijers, D. W. Walker, C. A. Browne and G. D. Thorburn
Fetal lambs were treated with a single dose of anti-mouse nerve growth
factor (anti-NGF) at 80 days gestational age. The catecholamine content of
tissues was determined at 135 days gestational age. There was a reduction
of either norepinephrine, epinephrine, or both, in the thymus, thyroid,
atrium (but not ventricle), lung, liver, kidney, and jejunum when compared
with age-matched control fetuses. The spleen, ileum, colon, and the adrenal
glands were not affected by anti-NGF. In treated fetuses there was a
reduction in catecholamine content of the thalamus, hypothalamus,
hippocampus, medulla, cerebellum, and cervical spinal cord. These results
show that some tissues are sensitive to, and some are refractory to, the
action of anti-NGF at 80 days gestation. Also the results suggest that NGF
may play a role in the development of catecholamine-containing neurons
within the central nervous system.
