title: Isolation of motoneuron cell bodies from spinal cord stored at -70 degrees C in ethylene glycol.
abstract: Pretreatment of spinal cord with ethylene glycol permits long-term storage of the tissue at -70 degrees C prior to isolation and biochemical analysis of the cell bodies of spinal motoneurons. The method is useful for storing spinal tissue from laboratory animals, as well as from human post mortem specimens, where aliquots of tissue may then be used for motoneuron isolation over an indefinitely long period. In addition to inhibiting the loss of soluble proteins from the neurons during freezing and thawing, cryoprotection increases the yield and improves the appearance of the isolated cell bodies. The method should aid biochemical studies of many kinds of neuronal subpopulations isolated from small amounts of starting material.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill 27514.
authors.forename: D V
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Sinicropi
authors.forename: V B
authors.initials: VB
authors.lastname: Hoke
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: McIlwain
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001001:Anura; D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase / Q000032:analysis; D003451:Cryoprotective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D005026:Ethylene Glycols / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005615:Freezing; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000166:cytology*; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D010734:Phosphogluconate Dehydrogenase / Q000032:analysis; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000166:cytology*; D014021:Tissue Preservation
chemical_list: D003451:Cryoprotective Agents; D005026:Ethylene Glycols; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D010734:Phosphogluconate Dehydrogenase; D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase