Somatostatin receptor on the afferent nerve terminals in the rat hepatoportal area

To determine whether somatostatin receptor (SSR) actually exists on the nerve terminals in the rat hepatoportal area, the area was immunostained by the labeled streptoavidin-biotin complex method using a monoclonal antibody against rat brain SSR. The SSR staining revealed many fiber arborizations with terminal nodular swellings like the afferent nerve endings in the neural body, which was located beneath the endothelium of the large branches of the intrahepatic portal vein. The results indicate that SSR is expressed on the characteristic structure, adding further evidence for our previous observation which showed the hepatic vagal reception for intraportal somatostatin and the somatostatin-binding neural body as a relevant structure.