AN ADRENAL SLICE PREPARATION FOR THE STUDY OF CHROMAFFIN CELLS AND THEIR CHOLINERGIC INNERVATION

Thin slices (200-300 mu m) of adrenal glands were prepared from Wistar rats. Patch-clamp recordings were made from visually identified chrom affin cells using the whole-cell and amphotericin B perforated-patch t echniques. Electrophysiological properties of chromaffin cells in slic es were similar to those in cultured cells. Catecholamine release from single chromaffin cells or cell clusters in slices was also measured by amperometry. Immunostaining of slices with an antineurofilament ant ibody revealed the presence of neuronal fibers. Acetylcholine release was stimulated either by raising external [K+] or by focally applying voltage pulses. Nicotinic excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) wer e detected, ranging from 20 pA to several hundreds of pA. Amplitude di stributions of spontaneous EPSCs revealed clear equidistant peaks, sup porting a quantal model for acetylcholine release onto chromaffin cell s. The adrenal slice preparation therefore appears to be an excellent model for studying both the cholinergic innervation of chromaffin cell s as well as catecholamine release from these cells. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.