[Distribution of alpha-tubulin in the structures of rat forebrain]

The distribution of alpha-tubulin, the major protein of the microtubules, was studied using immunohistochemistry in the rat forebrain structures. The differential distribution of alpha-tubulin immunoreactivity was detected: high immunoreactivity was found in cingulate and pyriform cortex, olfactory tubercles and optic chiasm, while the weakest immunohistochemical staining was observed in caudatoputamen, superficial layers of septum, cingulum and areas around the third cerebral ventricle. Immunoreactivity in the nervous cells was distributed along perikaryon periphery and in the apical dendrite. It is suggested that the intensity of alpha-tubulin immunohistochemical reaction could reflect the functional state of the neurons.