Plasticity in the Neurotransmitter Phenotype of Rat Sympathetic Neurons in Primary Culture

Plasticity in the neurotransmitter phenotype of immature neurons or neuron precursors in the developing autonomic nervous system (ANS) has been demonstrated in vivo and in primary cultures. It is known that the nature of the neurotransmitter synthesized by neurons of the avian ANS is not predetermined at the level of the neural crest, but is controlled by the cellular environment through which cells of the neural crest migrate[1]. Populations of neurons or neuroblasts have been described in rodent ANS which during development express in a transitory manner a adrenergic phenotype before switching to another (possibly cholinergic) phenotype[2–4].