Adrenergic and cholinergic innervation of pulmonary tissue in the pig

Both the adrenergic and the cholinergic components of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) have been found to be an important source of nerve fibres supplying the lungs. On the other hand, data regarding the innervation of the pulmonary tissue in breeding animals are surprisingly scarce. Therefore, in the present study noradrenergic and acetylcholinesterase-positive (AChE-positive) innervation of the lungs of sexually immature pigs was studied using histochemical methods. Studies were performed on six juvenile female pigs (aged 9 weeks, body weight 15-20 kg). Samples of the tissue were collected from the caudal lobe of the right lung. 70 microm cryostat sections were processed for the sucrose-potassium phosphate-glyoxylic acid technique to determine the occurrence and distribution of noradrenergic nerve fibres, while AChE-positive nerves were detected according to the acetylcholinesterase histochemistry. The present results revealed a dense network of noradrenergic nerve fibres localised mainly in the muscular membrane surrounding the epithelium of the bronchuli while AChE-positive nerve terminals supplied functional capillary vessels localised in the inter-alveolar septum and mucous membrane of the bronchi and bronchuli. The results of the present study confirm those of physiological experiments reporting the influence of the adrenergic and cholinergic components of the autonomic nervous system on the lung functions of pigs.