Pre- and post-hatching developmental changes in beta-adrenoceptor subtypes in chick brain
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Updated: Oct 23, 2026

Electroporation of the Hindbrain to Trace Axonal Trajectories and Synaptic Targets in the Chick Embryo
Published on: May 29, 2013
R Revilla1, C Fernández-López, V Revilla
1Departamento Biología Celular y Anatomía, Facultad de Biología, Campus de Vegazana s/n, Universidad de León, León 24071, Spain.
Abstract:
This study used [3H]CGP 12177 as a radioligand to determine the beta1 and beta2-adrenoceptor changes from the pre-hatching E17 stage, where the beta2 subtype is first detected, to the post-hatching P30 stage. While beta1-adrenoceptors were found to be present from E18 and were limited to cerebellum and hyperstriatum in all stages studied, beta2-adrenoceptors showed a wider distribution throughout the brain. In most of the structures analysed both beta1- and beta2-adrenoceptor binding values reached a maximum in the P2 stage, followed by a decrease over the following days. A second increase in both subtypes was detected again in the P15 and P30 stages. These results support the notion of a specific role for beta-adrenoceptors in neural plasticity in the first week after hatching and suggest that the beta2 subtype is the main adrenoceptor in chick brain throughout its development.
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