Increase of hypothalamic cholinergic activity in 2-deoxyglucose hyperglycemia.

Under inducement of hyperglycemia by intravenous administration of 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG), the contents of choline and acetylcholine (ACh) in the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus (VMH), lateral hypothalamus (LH) and paraventricular nucleus (PVN) were analyzed after a microdissection of the microwave treated brains. After the administration of 2-DG, the content of choline in those hypothalamic nuclei increased markedly, and the ACh decreased in both the LH and the PVN. The increment of plasma glucose was reduced in the adrenodemedullectomized rats, and simultaneously the increment of the choline in the LH further augmented. These results suggest the contribution of hypothalamic cholinergic neurons in 2-DG-induced hyperglycemia.