Lesion-induced neuronal nitric oxide synthase in Purkinje cells of the rat cerebellar cortex: histochemical and in situ hybridization study.
Lesion-induced induction of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) was examined in the rat cerebellum. The stab-lesioned cerebellar cortex was examined with NADPH-diaphorase (NADPH-d) histochemistry and in situ hybridization using nNOS cRNA probe at 1, 3, 7, 14, 35 days post-lesion. NADPH-d- and nNOS mRNA-positive Purkinje cells appeared adjacent to the lesion by 3 days after the lesion. The area of distribution expanded and the number of positive cells increased at 7 days after the lesion, and at 14 days post-lesion, shrunken NADPH-d-positive Purkinje cells with irregular surface appeared. NADPH-d activity and nNOS mRNA signal could not be detected in Purkinje cells after 35 days post-lesion. Combined NADPH-d histochemistry and in situ hybridization using glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD) cRNA probe revealed that nNOS-expressing Purkinje cells showed fewer GAD mRNA signals than those in normal Purkinje cells. The atrophic contour and the lower expression of GAD mRNA signals in NADPH-d positive Purkinje cells suggest that nNOS is expressed under a degenerating process.
Shigeyoshi
Y
Y
Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Kobe University School of Medicine, Kusunoki-cho, Chuo-ku, Japan.
Ogura
T
T
Esumi
H
H
Chihara
K
K
Ibata
Y
Y
Okamura
H
H
D000818:Animals; D002525:Cerebellar Cortex / Q000293:injuries / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D004790:Enzyme Induction; D006651:Histocytochemistry; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D008297:Male; D009252:NADPH Dehydrogenase / Q000032:analysis; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D011689:Purkinje Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D009252:NADPH Dehydrogenase