Autoradiographic studies on the uptake of H-3-noradrenaline and H-3-serotonin by neurones and astrocytes in explant and primary cultures of rat CNS: Effects of antidepressants

Autoradiographic studies were made on the uptake of H-3-noradrenaline and H-3-serotonin in explant cultures and primary astrocyte cultures from various regions of rat central nervous system (cortex, cerebellum, locus coeruleus, nucleus raphe, spinal cord). In explant cultures from locus coeruleus and nucleus raphe cell bodies and processes of many neurones revealed intense labelling by H-3-noradrenaline and H-3-serotonin, respectively. In cultures from cortex, cerebellum and spinal cord the cell bodies of neurones did not show labelling by the monoamines but many nerve fibres in the outgrowth zone had taken up H-3-noradrenaline and H-3-serotonin. Astrocytes in explant cultures did not take up H-3-noradrenaline and H-3-serotonin whereas astrocytes in primary cultures showed heavy uptake of both monoamines. In contrast, amino acid transmitters such as H-3-GABA and H-3-glutamate were accumulated by astrocytes in explant as well as in primary cultures. Uptake of both H-3-noradrenaline and H-3-serotonin by neurones and astrocytes was considerably reduced or inhibited in Na+-free incubation medium or at low temperature, suggesting an active uptake mechanism. Addition of the antidepressants maprotiline and (+)oxaprotiline inhibited the uptake of H-3-noradrenaline by neuronal cell bodies and fibres in explant cultures and by astrocytes in primary cultures. The uptake of H-3-serotonin by neurones and astrocytes was blocked by citalopram and paroxetine. Our studies demonstrate that astrocytes in primary cultures are able to actively take up H-3-noradrenaline and H-3-serotonin whereas there was no uptake of monoamines into astrocytes in explant cultures, suggesting that there is a difference between astrocytes in different culture systems (explant cultures vs primary cultures) with respect to the uptake of monoamine transmitters.