Borson S, Schatteman G, Claude P, Bothwell M
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle 98195.
Neuroendocrinology. 1994 May;59(5):466-76. doi: 10.1159/000126693.
Expression of neurotrophins and of the low-affinity neurotrophin receptor p75 was examined immunocytochemically in pituitary glands of twelve developing and adult macaques, ranging in age from fetal day 100 through age 5 years. Neurotrophins were identified by labeling with a rabbit polyclonal antiserum raised against purified mouse nerve growth factor, which recognizes brain-derived neurotropic factor and neurotrophin-3 as well. During pituitary morphogenesis, neurotrophins were present in epithelial cells distributed throughout all divisions of the anterior pituitary (pars distalis, pars intermedia, and pars tuberalis). Near term and in the adult, neurotrophin-immunoreactive cells were fewer in number and their distribution was limited to the pars distalis and pars tuberalis. A monoclonal antibody against the human neurotrophin receptor p75 heavily labeled mesenchymal boundary structures and blood vessels in the developing gland, and several populations of glial-like cells with a presumed paracrine function (folliculostellate cells in the pars distalis, and pituicytes and tanycytes in the neural lobe and infundibulum, respectively) as well as axons innervating the portal vasculature in postnatal specimens. These complementary patterns of neurotrophin and receptor expression suggest a possible inductive role for neurotrophins in pituitary morphogenesis and in the establishment of hypothalamic neural and hormonal control of pituitary function. In the adult anterior pituitary, examined using double-label immunocytochemistry for neurotrophins and conventional anterior-pituitary hormones, neurotrophins did not colocalize with human prolactin, human adrenocorticotropic hormone, recombinant human growth hormone, or the beta subunits of human luteinizing hormone, human follicle-stimulating hormone, or human thyrotropin. Neurotrophin-containing cells therefore appear to be a distinct population, suggesting novel paracrine or endocrine functions for this family of neuropeptides.
采用免疫细胞化学方法，检测了12只发育中和成年猕猴垂体中神经营养因子及低亲和力神经营养因子受体p75的表达情况。这些猕猴年龄从胎龄100天到5岁不等。通过用针对纯化小鼠神经生长因子产生的兔多克隆抗血清进行标记来鉴定神经营养因子，该抗血清也能识别脑源性神经营养因子和神经营养素-3。在垂体形态发生过程中，神经营养因子存在于分布在前叶各部分（远侧部、中间部和结节部）的上皮细胞中。在临近足月时和成年期，神经营养因子免疫反应性细胞数量减少，其分布局限于远侧部和结节部。一种针对人神经营养因子受体p75的单克隆抗体在发育中的腺体中强烈标记间充质边界结构和血管，以及几群具有假定旁分泌功能的胶质样细胞（远侧部的滤泡星状细胞，以及神经叶和漏斗中的垂体细胞和伸长细胞），以及产后标本中支配门静脉系统的轴突。神经营养因子和受体表达的这些互补模式表明，神经营养因子在垂体形态发生以及垂体功能的下丘脑神经和激素控制的建立中可能具有诱导作用。在成年前叶中，采用神经营养因子和传统垂体前叶激素的双重标记免疫细胞化学方法进行检测，神经营养因子与人催乳素、人促肾上腺皮质激素、重组人生长激素或人促黄体生成素、人促卵泡激素或人促甲状腺激素的β亚基不共定位。因此，含神经营养因子的细胞似乎是一个独特的群体，这表明该神经肽家族具有新的旁分泌或内分泌功能。
