The effect of cycloheximide, a protein synthesis inhibitor, was studied on the axonal transport of noradrenergic synaptic vesicles and presynaptic muscarinic receptors, identified by in vitro binding of [3H]dihydrotetrabenazine and [3H]quinuclidinylbenzilate, respectively, in rat sciatic nerve. Cycloheximide (1.5 mg/kg) administered subcutaneously 2 h before ligation decreased by approximately 50% the accumulation of vesicles and receptors in the proximal segment above the ligature placed on the nerve; its action was detectable after a lag period of 10 h and disappeared 96 h after administration. Double ligatures were placed on the nerve at various time intervals between the first (distal) and the second (proximal) ligature, and the accumulation of vesicles and receptors proximal to the second ligature was measured; the first ligature diminished the accumulation above the second ligature. At an interval of 96 h between the first and the second ligature, cycloheximide completely prevented the accumulation of vesicles and receptors proximal to the second ligature. The effects of double ligatures and the response to cycloheximide treatment can best be explained on the assumption that an important proportion of synaptic vesicles and presynaptic receptors is being recycled in the nerve cell bodies after retrograde transport.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.