1979 Volume 2 Issue 6 Pages 391-396
The regional and developmental change in specific activity of 2', 3'-cyclic nucleotide 3'-phosphohydrolase (CNPase) and carbonic anhydrase (CAase) and influence of the neonatal treatment with 6-hydroxydopa (6-OHDOPA) were investigated in the rat. CNPase activity rapidly increased between days 5 and 20, slightly between days 20 and 70. CAase activity gradually increased during postnatal development. The activities of both enzymes were higher in the brain stem and diencephalon than in the cerebral cortex and the cerebellum of the developing and adult animal. The systemic injection of 6-OHDOPA at birth induced a significant decrease in CNPase activity in the neocortex of the adult but in all regions of the 5-day-old rat. On the other hand, the treatment produced a significant increase in CAase activity in the neocortex and paleocarotex of the developing and adult rat. The neonatal treatment with 6-OHDOPA appears to impair normal growth of the brain by interfering the interaction between neurons and glial cells in the rat brain.
