Glucocorticoid Regulation of Glycerol Phosphate Dehydrogenase and Ornithine Decarboxylase Activities in the Spinal Cord of the Rat

: We examined the effects of glucocorticoids on induction of glycerol phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH) and ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) in the spinal cord of rats. After a single subcutaneous dose of 5 mg/kg of dexametha‐sone (DEX) phosphate, GPDH activity was maximally increased at 20 h with the effect still persisting for 46 h, in contrast to ODC activity, which was already stimulated at 4 h. The enzyme induction was accompanied by a reduction in number of cytosolic glucocorticoid receptors already at 1 h after DEX treatment, with replenishment at 22 h. A dose‐response curve for DEX demonstrated that the minimal effective dose (0.2 mg/kg) for enzyme induction also reduced the number of cytosolic receptors because of occupation/depletion. The effects were specific for natural and synthetic glucocorticoids, as GPDH and ODC activities were not stimulated by aldosterone, testosterone, estradiol, or progesterone. ODC was induced in the cervical region of the spinal cord as well as in the horse tail plus filum terminale, whereas GPDH responded in the former but not the latter region. Previous work has demonstrated that glucocorticoid receptors are slightly more concentrated in the cervical spinal cord. It is suggested that glucocorticoid induction of these two predominantly glial enzymes occurs by a steroid receptor‐mediated event, as postulated in other regions of the nervous system. In view of the short latency required for induction of ODC, we also examined the effect of inhibitors of transcription and translation. Whereas cycloheximide reduced the stimulatory effect of DEX, a paradoxical stimulation was obtained when DEX and dactinomycin (actinomy‐cin D) were given concomitantly. It is suggested that the inductive responses of GPDH and ODC to glucocorticoids may be different. Considering that GPDH induction has been shown by other laboratories to represent a genomic effect of adrenal steroids, different levels of control may account for the stimulation of ODC in the spinal cord.