Springer J E, Robbins E, Gwag B J, Lewis M E, Baldino F
Department of Neurology, Hahnemann University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19102-1192.
J Histochem Cytochem. 1991 Feb;39(2):231-4. doi: 10.1177/39.2.1846159.
Radioactively labeled RNA probes in conjunction with in situ hybridization histochemistry have become a useful method for studying gene expression in the central nervous system. We used digoxigenin-labeled uridine triphosphate to synthesize cRNA probes for localization of nerve growth factor receptor (NGFR) mRNA in the rat basal forebrain. Detection of cells containing digoxigenin-labeled NGFR mRNA was accomplished using a digoxigenin antibody conjugated with alkaline phosphatase. NGFR mRNA-positive cells were distributed in three major cell groups in the basal forebrain: the medial septal nucleus, vertical and horizontal limbs of the diagonal band of Broca, and nucleus basalis. This technique provides a rapid and sensitive method for high-resolution detection of mRNA species in the central nervous system, as well as the potential for co-localization of two different mRNA species within individual cells.
