title: Mammalian glial cells in culture synthesize acetylcholine.
abstract: In the present study we demonstrate that acetylcholine is synthesized by cultured mammalian glial cells identified by cell-type specific markers. Primary cultures of rat brain astrocytes or microglia contained 2.0 and 1.6 pmol acetylcholine/10(6) cells on average respectively. Astrocyte cultures established from neonatal mouse brain contained even more acetylcholine (about 80 pmol acetylcholine/10(6) cells). Primary cultures of rat brain astrocytes showed choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) enzyme activity of 3 nmol/mg protein/h; ChAT activity was blocked by 10 microM bromoacetylcholine. In conclusion, these data demonstrate the synthesis of the "neurotransmitter" acetylcholine in cultured glial cells, a finding which opens a new view upon the role of acetylcholine in mammalian brain.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, University of Mainz, Germany.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Wessler
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Reinheimer
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Klapproth
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Schneider
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Racké
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hammer
mesh_terms: D000109:Acetylcholine / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase / Q000378:metabolism; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D051379:Mice; D017628:Microglia / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase; D000109:Acetylcholine