[Tyrosine hydroxylase activity in rabbit autonomic nervous system ganglia in acute experimental emotional stress]

The Zigmond method was made use of to study tyrosine hydroxylase activity in cervical, stellate and nodosal ganglia of rabbits predisposed and resistant to stress. Experimental acute emotional stress was induced by concurrent stimulation of the ventromedial nuclei of the hypothalamus and different skin areas. Experiments have shown that changes in metabolic activity of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems were phasic in nature throughout 3 hours of the experiment. The changes in tyrosine hydroxylase activity in nodosal and stellate ganglia of rabbits predisposed to stress differs from those in stress-resistant animals. Stress-predisposed rabbits manifested a decrease in the activity of tyrosine hydroxylase in stellate and nodosal ganglia.