Parotid degeneration secretion of amylase in vitro in the rat following sympathectomy.

After extirpation of the superior cervical ganglion in the rat a degeneration secretion of amylase occurs in an in vitro preparation of the parotid gland. It can be detected about 14 h after the sympathectomy, reaches a maximum after about 17 h and then slowly subsides. It is abolished by atenolol, but not by dihydroergotamine or atropine, nor by tetrodotoxin. From this it is concluded that the phenomenon is due to an action mainly on beta 1-adrenoceptors exerted by noradrenaline, which is released from the degenerating sympathetic nerves at the neuro-glandular junctions, independently of propagated nerve impulses.