Neurokinin B receptor (NK3)-containing neurons in the paraventricular and supraoptic nuclei of the rat hypothalamus synthesize vasopressin and express Fos following intravenous injection of hypertonic saline.
Subnuclear localization of neurokinin B receptor (NK3) in the paraventricular and supraoptic nuclei of the hypothalamus was immunohistochemically investigated in the rat. In the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus, intense neurokinin B receptor-like immunoreactivity was found in the posterior magnocellular part, moderate to weak neurokinin B receptor-like immunoreactivity was seen in the other parts. In the supraoptic nucleus, intense neurokinin B receptor-like immunoreactivity was distributed in its principal part, and a few neurons with neurokinin B receptor-like immunoreactivity were found in the retrochiasmatic part. Co-localization of neurokinin B receptor-like immunoreactivity with vasopressin-like immunoreactivity was examined through serial adjacent sections. Neurons with both neurokinin B receptor-like immunoreactivity and vasopressin-like immunoreactivity were primarily found in the supraoptic nucleus and posterior magnocellular part of the pavaventricular nucleus. A small number of neurons with neurokinin B receptor-like immunoreactivity and vasopressin-like immunoreactivity were also seen in the circular nucleus and the region surrounding blood vessel in the anterior hypothalamus. Many neurokinin B receptor-containing neurons in the paraventricular and supraoptic nuclei, as well as in circular nucleus and the region surrounding the blood vessel, expressed Fos-like immunoreactivity after intravenous injection of hypertonic saline. The present study demonstrated that a large proportion of neurokinin B receptor-like immunoreactive neurons in the paraventricular hypothalamic and supraoptic nuclei contained vasopressin-like immunoreactivity, and expressed Fos-like immunoreactivity after intravenous administration of hypertonic saline. The results suggest that neurokinin B receptor in the two nuclei may be involved in modulation of the release of vasopressin when the internal environment is disturbed.
Ding
Y Q
YQ
Department of Anatomy and K.K. Leung Brain Research Center, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, People's Republic of China.
Lü
B Z
BZ
Guan
Z L
ZL
Wang
D S
DS
Xu
J Q
JQ
Li
J H
JH
D000818:Animals; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000378:metabolism; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007275:Injections, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism; D010286:Paraventricular Hypothalamic Nucleus / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D018042:Receptors, Neurokinin-3 / Q000378:metabolism*; D012462:Saline Solution, Hypertonic / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013495:Supraoptic Nucleus / Q000378:metabolism*; D014018:Tissue Distribution / Q000502:physiology; D014667:Vasopressins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000378:metabolism
D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos; D018042:Receptors, Neurokinin-3; D012462:Saline Solution, Hypertonic; D014667:Vasopressins