Table 1

Effect of bethanechol or decapitation on adrenal TH activity

Treatment	TH Activity
Treatment	0.1 mM 6MPH₄	4 mM 6MPH₄
	nmol/min/mg protein
Saline	0.07 ± 0.01	0.63 ± 0.04
Bethanechol	0.23 ± 0.01^1-a	0.90 ± 0.11^1-b
Decapitation	0.90 ± 0.11^1-a	2.0 ± 0.2^1-a

Rats were treated with saline or 10 mg/kg bethanechol (s.c.), and adrenals were harvested while under anesthesia 20 min after injection or they were removed immediately after decapitation. TH activity was measured in adrenal supernatants using either 0.1 or 4 mM 6MPH₄as cofactor in the assays. The data represent the mean ± S.E. from 3 rats. Results were statistically analyzed by one-way ANOVA after reciprocal transformation of the data.

↵1-a P < .001 compared with saline-treated animals assayed at the same 6MPH₄ concentration.
↵1-b P < .05 compared with saline-treated animals assayed at the same 6MPH₄ concentration.