In vitro capsaicin-induced cytological changes and alteration in calcium distribution in giant serotonergic neurons of the snail Helix pomatia: a light- and electron-microscopic study

Morphological changes induced by capsaicin were studied in the serotonergic metacerebral giant neurons of the cerebral ganglia of Helix pomatia under in vitro conditions. Capsaicin at a concentration of 10(-4)M caused characteristic structural alterations in the giant serotonergic neurons but did no...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Cell and tissue research Vol. 282; no. 3; pp. 445 - 453
Main Authors:	Hernádi, L, Erdélyi, L, Párducz, A, Szabadi, H, Such, G, Jancsó, G
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Germany 01-12-1995
Subjects:	Animals Calcium - metabolism Calcium Channels - drug effects Calcium Channels - metabolism Capsaicin - pharmacology Cobalt - pharmacology Ganglia, Invertebrate - drug effects Ganglia, Invertebrate - metabolism Ganglia, Invertebrate - ultrastructure Helix (Snails) Ion Channel Gating - drug effects Neurons - drug effects Neurons - metabolism Neurons - ultrastructure Neurotoxins - pharmacology Serotonin - metabolism
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Summary:	Morphological changes induced by capsaicin were studied in the serotonergic metacerebral giant neurons of the cerebral ganglia of Helix pomatia under in vitro conditions. Capsaicin at a concentration of 10(-4)M caused characteristic structural alterations in the giant serotonergic neurons but did not significantly influence serotonin immunoreactivity in the neurons. At the light-microscopic level, the most conspiciuous structural alterations were swelling of the cell bodies, which contained a swollen pale nucleus. Under the electron microscope, the nuclei, mitochondria and the cisternae of the endoplasmic reticulum were swollen in the capsaicin-affected metacerebral giant neurons. Electron-microscopic cytochemical techniques for calcium demonstration revealed electron-dense deposits in the swollen mitochondria and in the cisternae of the endoplasmic reticulum, suggesting an increased Ca2+ influx. The serotonergic metacerebral giant neurons could be labelled by cobalt (1mM) in the presence of capsaicin (10(-4)M) suggesting that capsaicin opens the cation chanels of the capsaicin-sensitive neuronal membrane. The morphological and cytochemical alterations induced by capsaicin in the serotonergic metacerebral giant neurons of Helix pomatia closely resemble those induced in sensory neurons of mammalian dorsal root ganglion.
ISSN:	0302-766X 1432-0878
DOI:	10.1007/BF00318876