AJP - Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, Vol 271, Issue 6 1481-R1488, Copyright © 1996 by American Physiological Society
Reorganization of the innervation of the vas deferens after sympathetic decentralization
K. Kihara, H. Kakizaki and W. C. de Groat
Department of Pharmacology, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, USA.
Reorganization of autonomic efferent pathways to the rat vas deferens was
noted after chronic (30 days) sympathetic decentralization produced by
hypogastric nerve (HGN) transection. In normal rats, electrical stimulation
of the HGN elicited an increase in vasal pressure (VP) bilaterally, whereas
pelvic nerve (PN) stimulation did not alter VP. However, after unilateral
HGN transection, stimulation of the PN on the transected side but not on
the normal side increased VP. The decentralized vas exhibited larger VP
responses to stimulation of the contralateral HGN in comparison with the
normal vas. After bilateral HGN transection, PN-induced VP responses were
elicited at lower stimulus intensities than in rats with unilateral
transections. PN-induced VP responses were blocked by hexamethonium and
prazosin but were not altered by atropine. Distension of the vas lumen
occurred after decentralization. PN-induced VP responses were not
detectable in extremely distended vas. These data indicate that, after
degeneration of sympathetic preganglionic axons, decentralized adrenergic
ganglion cells are reinnervated by parasympathetic or sympathetic
preganglionic pathways and that the reinnervation influences vasal
function.
