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SUBCELLULAR DISTRIBUTION OF d ‐AMINO ACID OXIDASE AND CATALASE IN RAT BRAIN
Author(s) -
Gaunt G. L.,
Duve C.
Publication year - 1976
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.1471-4159.1976.tb04447.x-i1
Subject(s) - catalase , cerebellum , peroxisome , biochemistry , differential centrifugation , cytochrome c oxidase , cell fractionation , enzyme , oxidase test , mitochondrion , cytoplasm , chemistry , biology , endocrinology , receptor
—Rat brain d ‐amino acid oxidase was found to be confined to the hindbrain, distributed more or less equally between cerebellum and medulla. Histochemical staining showed the enzyme to be localized largely in the molecular layer of the cerebellum. After fractionation by means of several distinct density gradient centrifugation procedures exploiting differences in sedimentation coefficient or in density or in both, the enzyme was found to be entirely or almost entirely associated with cytoplasmic particles with a median diameter of the order of 0·2 μm, and a median equilibrium density in aqueous sucrose of 1·18. Comparison with the behavior of cytochrome oxidase and of N ‐acetyl‐β‐glucosaminidase indicates that these particles are not mitochondria and are unlikely to be lysosomes. They also differ significantly from the bulk of the catalase‐containing particles, which on an average appear to be somewhat smaller. The possibility that they might contain some catalase activity, and thereby qualify as ‘peroxisomes’, can however not be excluded. In any case, they differ profoundly from the peroxisomes of liver or kidney.