Photoneural regulation of rat pineal nitric oxide synthase

We report here a photoneural regulation of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity in the rat pineal gland. In the absence of the adrenergic stimulation following constant light exposure (LL) or denervation, pineal NOS activity is markedly reduced. A maximal drop is measured after 8 days in LL. When ra...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of neurochemistry Vol. 62; no. 6; p. 2496
Main Authors Schaad, N C, Vanecek, J, Schulz, P E
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England 01.06.1994
Subjects
Amino Acid Oxidoreductases - metabolism
Animals
Ganglia, Sympathetic
Ganglionectomy
Light
Male
Nervous System Physiological Phenomena
Nitric Oxide Synthase
Photoperiod
Pineal Gland - enzymology
Pineal Gland - innervation
Pineal Gland - radiation effects
Rats
Rats, Wistar
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Summary:We report here a photoneural regulation of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity in the rat pineal gland. In the absence of the adrenergic stimulation following constant light exposure (LL) or denervation, pineal NOS activity is markedly reduced. A maximal drop is measured after 8 days in LL. When rats are housed back in normal light:dark (LD) conditions (12:12), pineal NOS activity returns to normal after 4 days. A partial decrease in pineal NOS activity is also observed when rats are placed for 8 days in LD 18:6 or shorter dark phases, indicating that pineal NOS activity reflects the length of the dark phase. Because it is known that norepinephrine (NE) is released at night from the nerve endings in the pineal gland and this release is blocked by exposure to light, our data suggest that NOS is controlled by adrenergic mechanisms. Our observation may also explain the lack of cyclic GMP response to NE observed in animals housed in constant light.
ISSN:0022-3042
DOI:10.1046/j.1471-4159.1994.62062496.x