title: Age-related changes in the release and uptake activity of presynaptic axon terminals of rat locus coeruleus neurons.
abstract: Age-related changes in the release and uptake activity of presynaptic axon terminals of rat locus coeruleus (LC) noradrenergic neurons were studied in the frontal cortex using an extracellular single unit recording technique in vivo. Clonidine, a selective alpha(2) adrenergic agonist, and nisoxetine, a selective noradrenaline uptake inhibitor, were infused locally into the frontal cortex to examine the effects of these drugs on release and uptake activities of the axon terminals of LC neurons. Although the infusion of clonidine produced a marked suppression of release, the effect did not change with age. Infusion of nisoxetine caused an inhibition of uptake, but the effect was attenuated in aged rats. These results suggest that the release activity mediated by the presynaptic autoreceptor did not change with age, but the uptake activity mediated by the NA transporter declined with age in the axon terminals of LC neurons.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Physiology, Department of Basic Gerontology, National Institute for Longevity Sciences, 36-3, Morioka-cho, 474-8522, Obu, Japan. shiro@nils.go.jp
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shirokawa
authors.forename: Yoshiyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ishida
authors.forename: Ken-ichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Isobe
mesh_terms: D018759:Adrenergic Uptake Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology; D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology; D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D003000:Clonidine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology; D005473:Fluoxetine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D005625:Frontal Lobe; D007260:Infusion Pumps; D008125:Locus Coeruleus / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008297:Male; D009638:Norepinephrine / Q000378:metabolism*; D017729:Presynaptic Terminals / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D011916:Rats, Inbred F344
chemical_list: D018759:Adrenergic Uptake Inhibitors; D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists; D005473:Fluoxetine; C011386:nisoxetine; D003000:Clonidine; D009638:Norepinephrine