Immunocytochemical localization of 5'-nucleotidase in myelinated peripheral nerves from the rat.

In sciatic and trigeminal nerves from the rat, 5'-nucleotidase immunostaining was observed on the surfaces of the myelinated fibers and in the membranes encircling the outermost loops of the myelin sheaths, the paranodal loops, and perhaps the inner loops, but neither in the compact myelin nor in the axoplasm. These results, which were consistent with previous biochemical data regarding sciatic nerve, suggest that the function of 5'-nucleotidase in myelinated fibers in the peripheral nervous system may be to promote diffusion of adenosine between the glial and neuronal compartments.