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Biochemical Study on the Critical Period for Treatment of the Mottled Brindled Mouse
Author(s) -
Fujii Tatsuya,
Ito Masatoshi,
Tsuda Hideo,
Mikawa Haruki
Publication year - 1990
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.1471-4159.1990.tb04574.x
Subject(s) - dopamine , cytochrome c oxidase , medicine , endocrinology , period (music) , subcutaneous injection , mitochondrion , copper , chemistry , biology , biochemistry , physics , organic chemistry , acoustics
Hemizygous mottled brindled mice ( Mo br/y mice) were treated by subcutaneous injection of copper and were decapitated on postnatal day 14. Cytochrome c oxidase (COX) activity of the brain mitochondria in the mice given 10 μg of copper/g on day 4 or 7 showed significant increases compared with that of untreated Mo br/y animals, and these mice had no neurological symptoms. Mice given 10 μg of copper/g on day 12 showed neither increases in COX activity nor clinical improvement. The brain levels of copper, nor‐adrenaline, and dopamine in the mice treated on day 12 were the same as those in animals treated on day 4 or 7. The in vitro activities of dopamine‐β‐hydroxylase of the brain were also the same among the treated mice, irrespective of the date of treatment. The results indicate that delays in copper treatment produce irreversible changes in COX activity of the brain and lead to clinical unresponsiveness to treatment.