The Role of the Brain in the Regulation of Peripheral Noradrenaline-producing Organs in Rats During Morphogenesis

Resumo

This work represents one part of our research project, in which we attempted to prove that a humoral regulation between noradrenaline-producing organs exist in the perinatal period. In this study, we used a rat model that allowed blocking the synthesis of noradrenalin in the brain and evaluated gene expression and protein levels of noradrenaline key synthesis enzymes such as tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DBH) in peripheral noradrenaline-producing organs. As a result, we showed an increased gene expression of TH and DBH in adrenal glands. These data indicate that, if neonatal rat brain lacks the ability to produce noradrenaline, then the synthesis of noradrenaline in adrenal glands increased as a compensatory process, so that the concentration levels in blood are maintained at normal levels. This indicates that there is a humoral regulation between brain and adrenal glands, which is not fully understood yet.