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GABA CONTENT OF DISCRETE BRATN NUCLEI AND SPINAL CORD OF THE RAT
Author(s) -
Heyden J. A. M.,
Kloet E. R.,
Korf J.,
Versteeg D. H. G.
Publication year - 1979
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.1471-4159.1979.tb09915.x
Subject(s) - globus pallidus , spinal cord , striatum , substantia nigra , chemistry , medicine , endocrinology , gamma aminobutyric acid , basal ganglia , central nervous system , biology , neuroscience , biochemistry , dopamine , dopaminergic , receptor
– The GABA content of the spinal cord and of approx 70 discrete rat brain nuclei is measured with a simple rapid semi‐automated fluorimetric assay, after prevention of post‐mortem effects with 3‐mercaptopropionic acid. We found that microwave irradiation produced decreases in the GABA contents of the microdissected zona reticulata of the substantia nigra, indicating that microwave fixation is not suitable to measure GABA levels in microdissected brain nuclei. In approx 70% of the nuclei in the anterior half of the brain the GABA concentration was found to be between 41 and 90nmol GABA/mg protein. The GABA content varied from 11 to 40 nmol GABA/mg protein in the posterior half of the brain. High GABA levels were found in some hypothalamic nuclei, the globus pallidus and eminentia mediana. An extremely high GABA level was found in the zona reticulata of the substantia nigra. GABA is unevenly distributed in the striatum. The highest concentration was found in the caudal part and in the ventral region at any level of the striatum. In the spinal cord the highest concentration of GABA was in the sacral region.