Horseradish peroxidase: factors affecting its distribution after retrograde infusion into the rat parotid gland

Previous studies have shown that tight junctions of the unstimulated rat parotid gland are impermeable to retrogradely administered tracers such as myoglobin. Permeability is increased following beta-adrenergic stimulation, allowing the tracers to reach the intercellular and interstitial spaces. Reaction product of retrogradely infused horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and lactoperoxidase in found in the intercellular and interstitial spaces in both resting and stimulated glands, and many acinar and duct cells contain diffuse cytoplasmic reaction product. In this study we investigate several factors that might influence the distribution of HRP in the parotid gland. Tracer distribution was similar with HRP obtained from different suppliers, with different HRP preparations (Sigma types II, VI, VIII, and IX), and at HRP concentrations of 0.1-10 mg/ml. Inclusion of various saccharides in the infusion solution had no effect on the distribution of reaction product. Inhibition of the enzymatic activity of HRP by extraction of the heme group or reaction with hydrazine reduced but did not eliminate the extraluminal and cytoplasmic reaction product. In contrast, HRP treated with high H2O2 concentrations (0.04 M) was retained in the lumina and cytoplasmic staining was nearly abolished. Immunofluorescent localization of untreated and H2O2-treated HRP after retrograde infusion confirmed the findings obtained using diaminobenzidine procedures. These results suggest that the peroxidatic activity of HRP may damage cell membranes and tight junctions in the rat parotid gland, and indicate that permeability studies employing HRP as a tracer should be interpreted with caution.