Pyruvate dehydrogenase activity in regions of the rat brain during postnatal development

Activity of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDHC) was measured in seven brain regions of the male rat at various times during the postnatal period using an arylamine acetyltransferase coupled assay. Three days after birth, PDHC activity was found to be less than 15% of adult values in all brain regions with the exception of hypothalamus and medulla-pons (30% of adult values in each case). Activity of the enzyme complex in these latter regions attained adult levels by 21 days postnatally, some 5-15 days ahead of that found in cerebral cortex, striatum, hippocampus, and cerebellum. Such differences in PDHC maturation reflect the greater degree of early maturity of the phylogenetically older brain structures. Cerebellar PDHC developed more slowly than in other brain regions to attain only 40% of adult levels by the time of weaning. The pattern of maturation of cerebellar PDHC is paralleled by increased incorporation of glucose into cerebral amino acids and by the pattern of development of parallel fiber synaptogenesis. These findings suggest that PDHC may play a key role in the regional development of metabolic compartmentation and the associated maturation of cerebral function in the rat.