THE REACTIONS OF PARTIALLY DENERVATED SMOOTH MUSCLE TO ADRENALINE AND SYMPATHIN

Abstract

Chronic partial post-ganglionic denervation of the nictitating membrane in the cat divides the smooth muscle into groups of cells which react in a quantitatively different manner to adrenaline and nerve stimulation. This difference is independent of the presence of either the superior cervical ganglion or the eyeballs. The most probable explanation is that the smooth muscle of the nictitating membrane is neither a syncytium like the heart or a group of sharply defined units like skeletal muscle, but occupies an intermediate position.