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Postmortem and Regional Changes of Serotonin, 5‐Hydroxyindoleacetic Acid, and Tryptophan in Brain
Author(s) -
McIntyre Iain M.,
Stanley Michael
Publication year - 1984
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.1471-4159.1984.tb12746.x
Subject(s) - serotonin , 5 hydroxyindoleacetic acid , tryptophan , cortex (anatomy) , cerebral cortex , striatum , endocrinology , medicine , chemistry , frontal cortex , temporal cortex , biology , neuroscience , biochemistry , amino acid , dopamine , receptor
Using a specific and sensitive high pressure liquid chromatographic technique for the measurement of serotonin (5‐HT), 5‐hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5‐HIAA), and tryptophan (TRP), we found that there were no changes in 5‐HT or 5‐HIAA in the rat cortex when left in situ for 6 h at room temperature or 24 h at 4°C. Only a minimal 14% increase in 5‐HT was observed after 24 h at 4°C in the striatum of the same animals. Concentrations of TRP, however, were increased significantly in both brain regions by these postmortem delay procedures. A second study revealed that there were significant regional 5‐HT and 5‐HIAA concentration differences within the cerebral cortex. The frontal cortex was shown to have the highest concentrations of 5‐HT and 5‐HIAA. Further, within the frontal cortex, 5‐HIAA levels varied, showing apparent progressive rostral to caudal increases. 5‐HT concentrations, however, remained constant within the frontal cortex. These results are discussed in reference to the conflicting reports of the previous human suicide and postmortem studies.