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HISTOCHEMISTRY OF RAT BRAIN STEM MONOAMINE OXIDASE DURING MATURATION
Author(s) -
Robinson N.
Publication year - 1968
Publication title -
journal of neurochemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.75
H-Index - 229
eISSN - 1471-4159
pISSN - 0022-3042
DOI - 10.1111/j.1471-4159.1968.tb06832.x
Subject(s) - locus coeruleus , monoamine oxidase , pons , neuropil , biology , endocrinology , medulla oblongata , neuromelanin , serotonin , medulla , medicine , anatomy , monoamine neurotransmitter , nucleus , monoamine oxidase a , nissl body , central nervous system , staining , neuroscience , dopamine , enzyme , biochemistry , substantia nigra , dopaminergic , receptor , genetics
—Monoamine oxidase (MAO) activity in the nuclei and tracts of the medulla and pons of the rat from birth to 90 days is reported. Prominent MAO activity was present in the locus coeruleus and nucleus ambiguus at birth. At 5 days a weak reaction localized mainly within the neuropil and glia cells was detected in several other nuclei. By 10 days all nuclei were identified with MAO activity varying from weak to intense, the activity showing further increases at 15 and 20 days. Staining in nerve fibres was negligible at 5 days but increased rapidly to 15 days in some tracts when the characteristic beading pattern was distinct. At 30 days differentiation in intensity of MAO activity between the nuclei diminished and no increase was apparent after 55 days. The results are compared with the distribution of brain stem acetylcholinesterase during maturation and also with regions specific in catecholamine or serotonin content in the adult rat brain stem. This and an earlier study on the cerebrum suggest that MAO is another component of the brain that falls into the caudal‐rostral concept of biochemical maturation and that it fits into a group of enzymes exhibiting a similar pattern of increase in activity during development.