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Heterogeneity of cholecystokinin/gastrin‐like immunoreactivity in the nervous system of the nematode Ascaris suum
Author(s) -
Sithigorngul Paisarn,
Cowden Cynthia,
Stretton Antony O.W.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
journal of comparative neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.855
H-Index - 209
eISSN - 1096-9861
pISSN - 0021-9967
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1096-9861(19960708)370:4<427::aid-cne2>3.0.co;2-6
Subject(s) - gastrin , cholecystokinin , biology , antiserum , epitope , ascaris , radioimmunoassay , monoclonal antibody , ascaris suum , immunocytochemistry , antibody , neuropeptide , microbiology and biotechnology , medicine , endocrinology , biochemistry , immunology , receptor , secretion , helminths
A wholemount immunocytochemical method was used for the localization of cholecystokinin (CCK8)‐like and gastrin‐like immunoreactivity in Ascaris. The patterns of specific neuronal staining given by two antisera and four monoclonal antibodies made against CCK8, and one antiserum made against gastrin were investigated. Preabsorption of these antibodies with CCK8 or gastrin 17 resulted in complete loss of immunoreactivity in almost all of the neurons (two antisera also contained nonspecific antibodies), suggesting that all of the antibodies recognize epitopes, in Ascaris neurons, that include some or all of the C‐terminal five amino acids that are identical in CCK8 and gastrin 17. However, the seven different antibodies showed immunoreactivity in different subpopulations of neurons, implying that there are at least seven different species of CCK‐like molecules in Ascaris. Fractionation of Ascaris peptide extracts by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), monitoring fractions with a CCK8 radioimmunoassay (RIA), also shows heterogeneity of molecules immunologically related to CCK8. © 1996 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.