Regional distribution of biogenic amines, amino acids and cholinergic markers in the CNS of the C57BL/6 strain

A reliable extrapolation of neurochemical alterations from a mouse model to human metabolic brain disease requires knowledge of neurotransmitter levels and related compounds in control mouse brain. C57BL/6 is a widely used background strain for knockout and transgenic mouse models. A prerequisite for reliable extrapolation from mouse brain to the human condition is the existence of analogous distribution patterns of neurotransmitters and related compounds in control mouse and human brain. We analysed regional distribution patterns of biogenic amines, neurotransmitter and non-neurotransmitter amino acids, and cholinergic markers. Distribution patterns were compared with known neurotransmitter pathways in human brain. The present study provides a reference work for future analyses of neurotransmitters and related compounds in mouse models bred in a C57BL/6 background strain.