A histochemical study of oxidative enzymes in the nervous system of vitamin E‐deficient rats

Abstract

The swollen axons which are seen in sensory relay nuclei of brainstem and spinal cord of vitamin E-deficient rats show marked activity of oxidative enzymes with the exception of succinic dehydrogenase. It is suggested that the mitochondria which accumulate in the swollen axons are deficient in their ability to utilize succinate. The affected axons come from cells in dorsal root ganglia whose perikarya show normal enzyme activity.