6-Hydrxydopa-induced stimulation of ornithine decarboxylase activity in the developing rat brain.

Abstract
The developmental alteration in the specific activity of ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) was investigated in the brain of rats treated with 6-hydroxydopa (6-OHDOPA) at birth. The specific activity of ODC in the cerebral hemispheres, brain stem and cerebellum declined from high level on day 4 to the non-detectable level in the adult. the neonatal treatment with 6-OHDOPA (75 mg/kg, s.c., 3 days) produced the rapid increase of ODC activity in the cerebral hemispheres and the brain stem in the 4- and 5-day-old rat. An injection of 6-OHDOPA appears to affect cellular activity of catecholamine neurons and glial cells in the developing brain.