Chemical Sympathectomy with 6-Hydroxydopamine

Abstract

The removal or destruction of an organ to elucidate its physiological role is one of the oldest and most commonly used methods in biological research. This principle has found extensive application in the investigation of the physiology and pharmacology of the sympathetic nervous system [Cannonand Rosenblueth, 1949; Trendelenburg, 1963 (1, 2)]. The surgical denervation is still the method of choice for the denervation of organs such as the nictitating membrane, iris or salivary gland which are innervated from single, easily accessible autonomic ganglia. However, for general sympathectomy or for the denervation of an organ with a more complex or less easily accessible innervation the surgical procedure is extremely cumbrous, time consuming and in small animals virtually not practicable. This explains the great interest in methods which provide the possibility to eliminate the sympathetic nervous system by other means Immunosympathectomy was the first such procedure which became available for destroying or better preventing the development and differentiation of a great part of the pre- and paravertebral sympathetic ganglia. It consists in the administration to newborn animals of an antibody against a protein essential for the development of sympathetic and sensory ganglia of various species (Cohen, 1960; Levi-Montalciniand Booker, 1960; Levi-Montalcini and Angeletti, 1966). More recently, an even simpler procedure became available which consists in the selective destruction of