Transient expression of α-1B adrenoceptor messenger ribonucleic acids in the rat superior cervical ganglion during postnatal development

Abstract

We have examined the developmental profile of the α-1 and α-2 adrenergic receptor messenger ribonucleic acids expression in the rat superior cervical ganglion. The expression of the six messenger ribonucleic acids was studied using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. At four weeks, the dominant messenger ribonucleic acids transcripts in this sympathetic ganglion were α-1C, α-2A, α-2B and α-2C. The expression of α-1 genes in the superior cervical ganglion appears to be regulated during postnatal development in that two α-1 (α-1B, α-1C) genes were expressed at birth, three, seven and 14 days postnatal but no amplified product for α-1B was detected at 28 days and in the aged animals, while the α-1C transcript continued to be expressed. No amplified product for α-1D was detected in superior cervical ganglion at any of the ages studied. While all three α-2 genes were expressed in the superior cervical ganglion at four weeks the dominant α-2 messenger ribonucleic acids transcript expressed in the superior cervical ganglion was α-2A. This pattern of α-2 adrenoceptor gene expression was maintained from birth, throughout development and into old age. These results suggest that the expression of α-1 adrenergic receptors in the superior cervical ganglion is regulated developmentally while the expression of α-2 genes remains unchanged. Show more