Abstract
Beta-adrenergic cell membrane receptors were studied in membrane fractions prepared from developing rat lung, heart, and brain tissues. Receptors were identified using radiolabeled (3H) dihydroalprenolol (DHA), a beta-adrenergic antagonist with high affinity for receptor sites. Developmental profiles from 19 days gestation to 24 hours after birth (TABLE) showed no significiant increase in the amounts of beta-adrenergic receptors in brain tissue. In heart tissue, an increase occurred between 19 and 20 days gestation. In lung tissue, there was a marked increase in receptors between 20 and 21 days gestation. This coincides with maturation of the pulmonary surfactant system, and it is speculated that the increase in lung receptors is associated with type II pneumocytes which are known to have beta-adrenergic receptors.
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