Effect of chronic guanethidine treatment on vascular norepinephrine content in the neonatal domestic pig.

Vinblastine, 6-hydroxydopamine, and antibody to nerve growth factor have been shown to destroy sympathetic neurons in neonatal rats. High doses of guanethidine produce permanent sympathectomies in the adult or newborn rat. Similar studies in the cat, rabbit, and hamster demonstrate that the sympathetic nervous systems are not destroyed with guanethidine. To produce permanent sympathectomy in a large animal model, guanethidine was administered to neonatal pigs. As with the cat, rabbit, and hamster, the sympathetic nervous system in the piglets was not destroyed by guanethidine.