Open AccessElevated Tyrosine Hydroxylase mRNA Levels in the Adrenal Medulla of Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats
Author(s) -
Toshio Kumai,
Masami Tanaka,
Minoru Watanabe,
Shinichi Kobayashi
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
japanese journal of pharmacology/japanese journal of pharmacology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1347-3506
pISSN - 0021-5198
DOI - 10.1254/jjp.65.367
Subject(s) - adrenal medulla , tyrosine hydroxylase , endocrinology , medicine , northern blot , epinephrine , messenger rna , medulla , norepinephrine , tyrosine 3 monooxygenase , adrenal gland , catecholamine , western blot , chemistry , biology , gene , dopamine , biochemistry
We investigated the expression of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) mRNA and its activity in the adrenal medulla of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY). The TH mRNA levels were determined by Northern blot and dot blot analyses. The TH activity and the expression of TH mRNA in the adrenal medulla of SHR were significantly higher than those of WKY (P < 0.01). These results suggested that the hypertension of SHR may be related to the high activity of TH due to the high level of TH mRNA, which increases epinephrine and norepinephrine levels in the adrenal medulla.