Abstract
Treatment of newborn rats with 6-hydroxydopamine resulted in a marked increase in the 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid level in brainstem and hypothalamus whereas the 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin) level in these two tissues was slightly but not significantly decreased. The activity of l-tryptophan-5-hydroxylase was increased in brainstem and hypothalamus but not significantly changed in cerebral cortex. The serotonin turnover appeared to be increased in all three brain areas studied. Treatment of neonatal rats with 6-hydroxydopamine had no apparent effect on the tryptophan level of rat brain or on the activities of other enzymes involved in the metabolism of serotonin. The histamine content of rat hypothalamus was significantly increased, although there was no change in the level in the remainder of the brain. It was concluded that sympathectomy by 6-hydroxydopamine in neonatal rats results in changes in brain serotonin and histamine in addition to the reported changes in norepinephrine.
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