Effects of hypoxia on the activities of noradrenergic and dopaminergic neurons in the rat brain.

The effects of hypoxia (10% O2, 90% N2) on the content, biosynthesis, and turnover of noradrenaline (NA) and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethylamine (dopamine, DA) in the rat brain were examined. Up to 24 h following exposure to hypoxia, NA content in the whole brain was decreased, whereas DA content remained unchanged. The accumulation of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) after central decarboxylase inhibition was decreased. The turnover rate of DA after synthesis inhibition was markedly decreased up to 8 h and returned to the control level within 24 h. In contrast, the turnover rate of NA was all but unchanged, except for a 4-h exposure. The 2-h exposure to the hypoxic environment resulted in a significant decrease in NA content and DOPA accumulation in all brain regions tested, but no significant change was observed in DA content. The turnover rate of DA was remarkably decreased in all brain regions tested, whereas the rate of NA was slightly decreased only in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. These results suggest that although hypoxia decreases the biosynthesis of both NA and DA, the effects of oxygen depletion on the functional activities of NA neurons differ considerably from those of DA neurons: Only in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus are the NA neurons slightly sensitive to hypoxia, whereas the DA neurons are most sensitive in all brain regions.