Hughes S, Smith M E
Department of Physiology, Medical School, University of Birmingham, UK.
Neurosci Lett. 1993 Dec 12;163(2):205-7. doi: 10.1016/0304-3940(93)90383-v.
Pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) mRNA was detected in motoneurones of mice using histochemical in situ hybridization and cDNA oligonucleotide probes for the adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) 4-11 and beta-endorphin 1-8 regions of POMC. Staining for POMC mRNA was negligible in motoneurones in normal adult mice but in dystrophic mice the mRNA was present in > 60% of the ventral horn cells. It is concluded that neuropathic change in motoneurones is accompanied by upregulation of the POMC gene and synthesis of POMC-derived peptides.
