Tyrosine hydroxylase and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase immunoreactivities in the cnidarian Renilla koellikeri.
Western Blot and immunohistochemical studies were conducted in the sea pansy Renilla koellikeri, a representative of the earliest multicellular animals with a nervous system, using various antibodies raised against enzymes of the catecholamine biosynthetic pathway. Western blots of sea pansy extracts revealed a protein band that co-migrated with dopamine-beta-hydroxylase (DBH) from mouse adrenal glands. Similar experiments with antisera against tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) revealed several immunoreactive protein bands, all of larger molecular weight than mammalian tyrosine hydroxylase. DBH-like and, to a lesser extent, TH-like and phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase-like immunoreactivities were detected in ectodermal sensory neurons and associated subectodermal neurites, in neurons of the mesogleal nerve-net and associated amoebocytes, and in some endodermal neurons. While it is still not clear whether the detected TH-immunoreactive proteins represent some form of TH, the presence in sea pansies of a DBH-like protein is in agreement with previously detected norepinephrine-like immunoreactivity in the same species. The widespread distribution of these immunoreactivities in various sea pansy neurons suggests important roles for catecholamines in nerve net activity.[1]References
- Tyrosine hydroxylase and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase immunoreactivities in the cnidarian Renilla koellikeri. Anctil, M., Hurtubise, P., Gillis, M.A. Cell Tissue Res. (2002) [Pubmed]
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