Histofluorescent and radioenzymatic analysis of colonic catecholamines in man.

Colonic tissues from patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), ileal tissue from patients with Crohn's disease (CD), and other ileocolonic disorders were radioenzymatically assayed for norepinephrine (NE) and dopamine (DA). These assays showed that the NE content of UC colon ranged from 3.2 to 4.3 ng/mg wet tissue, while in other colonic disorders it ranged from 3.0 to 5.3 ng/mg. Similarly, the DA content of UC colon ranged from 0.42 to 1.17 ng/mg wet tissue, while for other colonic disorders it ranged from 0.48 to 0.89 ng/mg. The same tissues were examined histochemically using glyoxylic acid condensation of catecholamines (CA) for the semi-quantitation of CA-containing structures. Examination of these structures revealed an apparent increase in their staining intensity in the myenteric plexus in ulcerative colitis as compared to other colonic disorders. Morphologically, the CA-containing structures of the colon appeared to be increased in UC, but determination of the NE and DA concentrations in colonic samples revealed no statistically significant differences in comparable regions of the colon.