Query re adrenal medullary innervation
I had comfortably got along for some years with von Euler's proposal based on: 1. histochemical studies by Hillarp and Hokfelt (B., I think, tho' it may have been T.); by variations in proportional secretion of NA and A in different laboratories (which was atrributed to varying degrees of effective splanchnic nerve stimulation); and by Euler's own studies of hypothalamic stimulation which showed that stimulating in one place caused a large outpouring of NA while in another place the same causes a large outpouring of A (his Harvey Lectures, 1959)--so I was comfortable from all this evidence with v Euler's conclusion that there are separate axons to the adrenal medulla for NA and A cells. Very recently an impeccably reliable source has inadvertently caused me confusion. He informed me that ALL the cells contain NA but some do contain a much greater percentage of A than others. The inference I drew is that either there are cells which lie closer to cytoplasmic methylating enzyme (which would then have to be considered inhomogeneously dispersed in the cytoplasmic sap) or there are storage vesicles in some cells whose noradrenaline molecules have, for whatever reason, greater access to the N-methylating enzyme. My queries are: Is the impeccable source correct, as I imagine he is? And if he is, how does this information accord with Euler's concept of different axons? I'll add a third question: am I confused for no good reason? And a fourth: is the matter still open to question and in need of more research? Mind you, I'm three hours (one way) from the Countway library in Boston and the same from the Dartmouth Library in Hanover, because it's easier to go north and south from northern New Hanmpshire than it is to go east and west from one border to another in NH. So if it's possible to give me a relatively simple answer by email, I'd very much appreciate it. Thank you, Richard Burack PO Box 5 Jackson, NH 03846