V. P. Whittaker

Research Article| August 01 1959 The isolation and characterization of acetylcholine-containing particles from brain V P Whittaker V P Whittaker 1Agricultural Research Council Institute of Animal Physiology, Babraham, Cambridge Search for other works by this author on: This Site PubMed Google Scholar Biochem J (1959) 72 (4): 694–706. https://doi.org/10.1042/bj0720694 Views Icon Views Article contents Figures & tables Video Audio Supplementary Data Peer Review Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Cite Icon Cite Get Permissions Citation V P Whittaker; The isolation and characterization of acetylcholine-containing particles from brain. Biochem J 1 August 1959; 72 (4): 694–706. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/bj0720694 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll JournalsBiochemical Journal Search Advanced Search This content is only available as a PDF. © 1959 CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS1959 Article PDF first page preview Close Modal You do not currently have access to this content.

1. Synaptic vesicles separated by density-gradient centrifugation from extracts of the cholinergic nerve terminals of the electric organ of Torpedo marmorata were found to contain appreciable amounts of ATP as well as acetylcholine. 2. Vesicular ATP was stable in the presence of concentrations of apyrase and myokinase that rapidly destroyed equivalent amounts of endogenous or added free ATP; pre-treatment of cytoplasmic extracts of electric tissue with these enzymes destroyed endogenous free ATP, but did not affect the vesicular ATP. 3. When [U-(14)C]ATP was added to electric tissue at the time of comminution and extraction of the vesicles, all the radioactivity was associated with soluble components in the subsequent fractionation: none was associated with vesicles or membrane fragments; thus it is unlikely that vesicular ATP can be accounted for by the sequestration of endogenous free ATP within any vesicles formed during comminution and extraction of the tissue. 4. When synaptic vesicles were passed through iso-osmotic columns of Bio-Gel A-5m, which separates vesicles from soluble proteins and small molecules, all the recovered ATP and acetylcholine passed through together in the void volume. 5. Regression analysis showed that vesicular ATP content was highly correlated with vesicular acetylcholine content in different experiments, the molar ratio acetylcholine/ATP being 5.32+/-(s.e.m.) 0.45 (21 expts.) for the peak density-gradient fraction. The ratio varied, however, somewhat across the density-gradient peak suggesting some degree of chemical heterogeneity in the vesicle population.