Chromogranin A in neurons of the rat cerebellum and spinal cord: quantification and sites of expression.

Chromogranin A (CGA) is an abundant protein of dense-cored secretory vesicles in endocrine and neuronal cells. The present study, for the first time, compares CGA of neurons of the central nervous system with the CGA of adrenal origin. By S1 nucleus protection assay, we found that the 3' part of the CGA mRNA between exons 5-8 of the cerebellum and the spinal cord of the rat is homologous to that of the adrenal. In situ hybridization histochemistry revealed that CGA mRNA in the cerebellar cortex is present in cell bodies of Purkinje cells and in neurons of the deep cerebellar nuclei. The perikarya of these cells also exhibit CGA-like immunoreactivity. CGA mRNA and CGA-like immunoreactivity are also present in the motoneurons of the ventral, lateral, and dorsal horns of the rat spinal cord. The amounts of CGA, as determined by radioimmunoassay in cerebellum and spinal cord, were about one tenth of the amounts detected in the adrenal, adenohypophysis, or the olfactory bulb. The sites of CGA expression suggest that CGA may be involved in signal transduction in the motor system.