Effect of GM1 ganglioside treatment on postlesion responses of cholinergic enzymes in rat hippocampus after various partial deafferentations.

The effect of intramuscular administration of monosialoganglioside (GM1) on postlesion responses of choline acetyltransferase and acetylcholinesterase activity in partially deafferented rat hippocampus was studied at various survival times. Lesions partially destroying the medioventral, septal area, or lesions performed in supracallosal stria including corpus callosum and cingulum evoked cholinergic denervation of the hippocampus, while those made in entorhinal cortex resulted in partial glutamatergic deafferentation. GM1 treatment potentiates the responses of both cholinergic enzymes, independently of whether the partial deafferentation was homo- or heterotypical. These data indicate that GM1 may facilitate the regrowth of new cholinergic nerve terminals. However, an effect on other compensatory processes, especially in the first postoperative period, is also possible.