Impaired growth hormone-releasing hormone neurons ultrastructure and peptide accumulation in the arcuate nucleus of mosaic mice with altered copper metabolism

A progressive decrease in body weight and retarded linear growth observed in mosaic male mice with the mutation linked to X-chromosome (Atp7amo−ms) raised the question whether hypophysiotropic growth axis activity may be affected in these animals. A pathologically developed median eminence ultrastructure with very low somatostatin accumulation as well as an intensive phagocytosis of growth hormone cells observed in the anterior pituitary gland raised the question whether hypothalamic growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) neuronal network is also affected in mosaic mice. In this study an arcuate nucleus GHRH neurons ultrastructure as well as GHRH peptide accumulation in normal and mutant mice were compared. An electron microscopic immunocytochemical method with colloidal-gold labeling was applied to compare the ultrastructural morphology of GHRH neuron and intracellular GHRH peptide distribution. Mosaic mice exhibited a pathologically developed ultrastructure of arcuate nucleus GHRH neurons, defective intracellular peptide localization as well as reduced peptide storage. Obtained results support the crucial role of unaltered copper metabolism in physiological development of hypophysiotropic growth axis activity. Consequently, a pathologically developed GHRH hypothalamic network may impact progressive decrease in body weight and retarded length growth observed in mosaic male mice.