Porter A J, Wattchow D A, Brookes S J, Schemann M, Costa M
Department of Surgery, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia.
Gastroenterology. 1996 Aug;111(2):401-8. doi: 10.1053/gast.1996.v111.pm8690205.
BACKGROUND & AIMS: Choline acetyltransferase, an enzyme involved in the synthesis of acetylcholine, is a marker of cholinergic neurons. In this study, the distribution of choline acetyltransferase immunoreactivity in human intestine is described.
Frozen-section and whole-mount preparations of human small and large bowels were made and labeled with antiserum to choline acetyltransferase. Double labeling with antiserum to neuron-specific enolase enabled the proportion of all neurons that were immunoreactive for choline acetyltransferase to be determined.
Nerve fibers, immunoreactive for choline acetyltransferase, were frequent in the circular and longitudinal muscle layers and were widespread in the myenteric and submucous plexuses, but none was observed in the mucosa. Myenteric neurons, immunoreactive for choline acetyltransferase, showed various morphologies, the most common being unipolar and having an irregular outline with several short, lamellar processes. Sixty-four percent of all myenteric neurons were immunoreactive for choline acetyltransferase. Cholinergic submucous neurons were homogeneous in appearance with oval, smooth cell bodies and filamentous dendrites and accounted for 53% of all submucous neurons. A number of cells resembling enteroendocrine cells in the epithelium of the small and large bowels had intense choline acetyltransferase immunoreactivity.
The majority of neurons in human small and large intestines are cholinergic.
胆碱乙酰转移酶是一种参与乙酰胆碱合成的酶，是胆碱能神经元的标志物。在本研究中，描述了胆碱乙酰转移酶免疫反应性在人肠道中的分布。
制作了人小肠和大肠的冰冻切片及整装标本，并用抗胆碱乙酰转移酶抗血清进行标记。用抗神经元特异性烯醇化酶抗血清进行双重标记，以确定对胆碱乙酰转移酶呈免疫反应的所有神经元的比例。
对胆碱乙酰转移酶呈免疫反应的神经纤维在环形和纵形肌层中很常见，在肌间神经丛和黏膜下神经丛中广泛分布，但在黏膜中未观察到。对胆碱乙酰转移酶呈免疫反应的肌间神经元呈现出各种形态，最常见的是单极的，轮廓不规则，有几个短的板层状突起。所有肌间神经元中有64%对胆碱乙酰转移酶呈免疫反应。胆碱能黏膜下神经元外观均匀，细胞体呈椭圆形、光滑，有丝状树突，占所有黏膜下神经元的53%。在小肠和大肠上皮中，一些类似于肠内分泌细胞的细胞具有强烈的胆碱乙酰转移酶免疫反应性。
人小肠和大肠中的大多数神经元是胆碱能的。
