Immunohistochemical demonstration of peptides, serotonin and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase-like material in the nervous system of the leech Hirudo medicinalis

The central ganglia of the leech, Hirudo medicinalis, were processed for the immunohistochemical localisation of bombesin-, substance P-, cholecystokinin-, vasoactive intestinal polypeptide-, enkephalin-, serotonin- and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase-related substances. To varying extents all of the substances were localised in neuropile processes, and all, with the exception of substance P, were associated with specific perikarya. The most prominent neuropeptides, in terms of the number of immunoreactive neurones, were cholecystokinin and vasoactive intestinal peptide. The dopamine-beta-hydroxylase positive neurones are thought to be octopaminergic, and the serotonin monoclonal antibody revealed positive staining in the Retzius cells. We were unable to demonstrate the coexistence of pairs of substances in any neurones in the leech ganglia.

Abstract sourced from PubMed (NCBI) for the cited record. See the original publication for the authoritative version.

Immunohistochemistry of Hirudo medicinalis central ganglia localized bombesin-, substance P-, cholecystokinin-, vasoactive intestinal polypeptide-, enkephalin-, serotonin- and dopamine-beta-hydroxylase-like substances; cholecystokinin and vasoactive intestinal peptide immunoreactive neurones were most numerous, with no coexistence of substance pairs demonstrated.

Explore how this research connects to clinical practice

More peer-reviewed studies in Genomics & Proteomics.

• Leech Salivary Proteome and Transcriptome: 434 Deduced Protein Sequences — Liu Z, Tong X, Su Y, et al. (2019)
• Medicinal Leech Draft Genome — Anticoagulant Gene Survey — Kvist S, Manzano-Marín A, de Carle D, Trontelj P, Siddall ME (2020)
• Leech therapy (Hirudo medicinalis) attenuates testicular damages induced by testicular ischemia/reperfusion in an animal model — Davoodi F et al. (2021)
• New anticoagulant protein from medicinal leech — Manuvera V et al. (2024)
• AIF-1 and RNASET2 Play Complementary Roles in the Innate Immune Response of Medicinal Leech — Baranzini N et al. (2019)
• Medicinal leech antimicrobial peptides lacking toxicity represent a promising alternative strategy to combat antibiotic-resistant pathogens — Grafskaia E et al. (2019)
• Structural insights into thrombolytic activity of destabilase from medicinal leech — Marin E et al. (2023)
• The genome of medicinal leech (Whitmania pigra) and comparative genomic study for exploration of bioactive ingredients — Tong L et al. (2022)
• Medicinal Leech CNS as a Model for Exosome Studies in the Crosstalk between Microglia and Neurons — Raffo-Romero A et al. (2018)
• Transcriptomic profiling and the first spatial expression analysis of candidate genes in the salivary gland of the East Asian medicinal leech, Hirudo nipponia — Kim J et al. (2024)

Browse all ASH-analysed research →