Cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript peptide in the rat epididymis: An immunohistochemical and electrophysiological study

30Citations
Citations of this article
9Readers
Mendeley users who have this article in their library.

Abstract

Cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) is a novel family of peptides, of which CART peptide fragments 55-102 and 62-102 are reported to be the endogenous, physiologically active peptides. Immunohistochemical studies with an antiserum directed against the CART peptide fragment 55-102 revealed CART-like immunoreactive (CART-LI) nerve fibers in the rat epididymis. The number was highest in the cauda epididymis and became progressively fewer toward the caput epididymis; the vas deferens exhibited an abundance of CART-LI fibers. Injection of the retrograde tracer Fluorogold (Fluorochrome, Inc., Englewood, CO) to the junction between the vas deferens and cauda epididymis labeled a large number of neurons in the major pelvic ganglion, some of which were CART-positive. Double-labeling the ganglion sections with tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and CART antisera revealed that CART-LI and TH-LI were expressed in two distinct populations of ganglion cells. Some of the TH-LI cells in the ganglia, however, were covered with web-like CART-LI endings. The effects of CART peptide 55-102, referred to herein as CART, on anion secretion in the form of short circuit currents (Isc) were assessed in cultured epithelia. The CART (1 to 5 μM) applied to the basolateral or apical side of the cultured epithelia caused no significant responses on Isc, whereas lys-bradykinin (1 μM) produced a large Isc response in the same preparations. Our results show that CART-LI is present in a population of rat pelvic ganglion cells, which may give rise to CART-LI nerve fibers as observed in the vas deferens and the epididymis. The biological function of CART in the rat epididymis is not known, but it apparently is not involved in ion secretion across the epithelium.

References Powered by Scopus

PCR differential display identifies a rat brain mRNA that is transcriptionally regulated by cocaine and amphetamine

613Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript peptide immunohistochemical localization in the rat brain

417Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Immunohistochemical localization of novel CART peptides in rat hypothalamus, pituitary and adrenal gland

356Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Cited by Powered by Scopus

Characterization of two forms of cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript (CART) peptide precursors in goldfish: Molecular cloning and distribution, modulation of expression by nutritional status, and interactions with leptin

140Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Plasticity of pelvic autonomic ganglia and urogenital innervation

102Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Hypothalamic cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript neurons project to areas expressing gonadotropin releasing hormone immunoreactivity and to the anteroventral periventricular nucleus in male and female rats

86Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Register to see more suggestions

Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.

Already have an account?

Cite

CITATION STYLE

APA

Dun, N. J., Dun, S. L., Wong, P. Y. D., Yang, J., & Chang, J. K. (2000). Cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript peptide in the rat epididymis: An immunohistochemical and electrophysiological study. Biology of Reproduction, 63(5), 1518–1524. https://doi.org/10.1095/biolreprod63.5.1518

Readers' Seniority

Tooltip

Researcher 3

60%

Professor / Associate Prof. 2

40%

Readers' Discipline

Tooltip

Agricultural and Biological Sciences 4

100%

Save time finding and organizing research with Mendeley

Sign up for free