Presence and influence of cholinergic nerves in the mouse thyroid

The presence and influence of cholinergic nerves in the mouse thyroid was studied by histochemistry and measurements of changes in blood radioiodine (BRI) levels. Numerous nerve fibers displaying specific acetyl choline esterase activity were found, not only as a dense network around vessesl but also as single fibers running around and between thyroid follicles. In stress-adapted normal mice, injection of carbamyl choline (CCh) reduced the BRI levels. In mice whose TSH secretion was suppressed by L-T4, neither CCh nor atropine had any measurable influence on the BRI levels when given alone. However, CCh pretreatment reduced and atropine pretreatment enhanced the TSH-induced BRI increase in such animals. It is concluded that the murine thyroid contains numerous cholinergic nerves that may influence not only thyroid blood flow but also thyroid hormone secretion directly. This direct influence appears to be an inhibitory one, mediated via muscarinic receptors in the follicle cells.