Release of acetylcholine and noradrenaline from the cholinergic and adrenergic afferents in rat hippocampal CA1, CA3 and dentate gyrus regions.

An attempt was made to study the release of acetylcholine (ACh) and noradrenaline and their presynaptic modulation in isolated slice preparations dissected from different subfields of the hippocampus: CA1, CA3 and the dentate gyrus. The slices were perfused and loaded with [3H]choline or with [3H]noradrenaline. The release in response to field stimulation was determined radiochemically and the content of transmitters was assayed by a chemiluminescent method or by HPLC combined with electrochemical detection. After 30 min of loading with [3H]choline there were marked subregional differences in the specific activity of [3H]ACh content. The highest concentration was measured in the dentate gyrus and the lowest in CA3. Evidence was obtained that in all three subfields the cholinergic axon terminals are equipped with inhibitory muscarinic autoreceptors and the noradrenergic terminals with alpha 2-autoreceptors, as indicated by an increase in transmitter release when the tissue was exposed to selective muscarinic or alpha 2-adrenoceptor antagonists. In contrast, the cholinergic boutons are not equipped with alpha 2-adrenoceptors, and noradrenergic terminals do not possess inhibitory muscarinic receptors. It is therefore concluded that while the release of both ACh and noradrenaline is controlled by negative feedback modulation, there is no possibility of establishing a presynaptic inhibitory interaction between the two.