Fig. 3

ChAT administration decreases blood pressure. A SDS-PAGE of purified recombinant human ChAT. As predicted from sequence, ChAT has a molecular weight of ~ 72 kD. B specific activity of recombinant ChAT (rChAT) and commercially available ChAT. Data represented as one assay performed in triplicate. ****p < 0.0001, one-way ANOVA with Dunnett’s correction, C normalized MAP in the 3 h period after ChAT administration. MAP is normalized to the 30-min period before ChAT or vehicle administration, and area under the curve is calculated from a baseline of 100%. n = 5–11. ns, not significant, one-way ANOVA with Dunnett’s multiple comparison test. D MAP after ChAT administration at time 0. Data are averaged every 20 min and represented as group mean ± SEM, n = 5–11. ns: not significant, two-way ANOVA with Sidak’s multiple comparisons test. E HR, F body temperature and G activity scores in the 24 h period post-ChAT administration. Gray background indicates dark cycle. Data are averaged every hour and represented with lines as group mean ± SEM. ns not significant, **p < 0.01, two-way ANOVA with Sidak’s multiple comparison test. H change in normalized MAP. MAP is normalized to the 30-min period before L-NAME or vehicle pre-treatment. After normalization, area under the curve for 1 h post-ChAT administration is calculated from a baseline of 100%. Negative values correspond to decrease in MAP. n = 7–8. *p < 0.05, t-test