title: Light and electron microscopic evidences of the presence of c-fos-like immunoreactivity in the rat adrenal cortex.
abstract: The presence and localization of c-fos-like immunoreactivity in the rat adrenal cortex has been demonstrated by immunocytochemical methods at both light and electron microscopic level. C-fos-like immunoreactivity was detected in the zona fasciculata and the zona reticulata, but not in the zona glomerulosa. Ultrastructurally, all products of c-fos-like immunoreaction were localized exclusively in the regions associated with the euchromatin in the nucleus of the immunoreactive cells. Moreover, a higher density of the immunoreactive cells in the adrenal cortex of pregnant rats was found with quantitative immunocytochemistry as compared to the non-pregnant. The characteristic zonation of c-fos-like immunoreactivity in the adrenal cortex suggest that the c-fos protein is involved in the normal function of the glucocorticoid-producing cells of mammalian adrenals. The numerical increase in the immunoreactive cells in pregnant rats implies that basal expression of the c-fos-like protein may vary with the functional state of the cortical cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, University of Tampere, Finland.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Koistinaho
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hervonen
mesh_terms: D000302:Adrenal Cortex / Q000032:analysis* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D000818:Animals; D002452:Cell Count; D005260:Female; D005629:Frozen Sections; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D011247:Pregnancy; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos