Volume 52 (4): 529-539, 2004 Copyright ©The Histochemical Society, Inc. Histochemical and Histofluorescence Tracing of Chelatable Zinc in the Developing Mouse
Departments of Morphology (YBN,WFS) and Physiology (IS), Zlotowski Center for Neuroscience, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel Correspondence to: Dr. William F. Silverman, Dept. of Morphology, Faculty of Health Sciences, PO Box 653, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84 103, Israel. E-mail: szeev{at}bgumail.bgu.ac.il
Zinc is an essential element in mammalian development. However, little is known about concentrations of zinc in specific regions/organs in the embryo. We have employed selenite autometallography (AMG) and TSQ histofluoroscence to detect histochemically reactive (chelatable) zinc in whole midsagittal embryos and sections from neonatal mice. Chelatable zinc exhibited a broad distribution, being particularly localized to rapidly proliferating tissues, such as skin and gastrointestinal epithelium. Zinc was also observed in various types of tissues such as bone and liver. In the perinatal central nervous system, zinc was present almost exclusively in choroid plexus. The two methods used demonstrated generally similar distributions with some exceptions, e.g., in liver and blood. The ubiquity of zinc in the embryo, particularly in rapidly proliferating tissues, suggests a widespread role in fetal physiology. (J Histochem Cytochem 52:529539, 2004)
Key Words: embryo gestation metal localization tissue
ZINC is crucial for normal embryonic development of vertebrates (Falchuk and Montorzi 2001
Specimen Collection Pregnant CD-1 female mice (conception confirmed by vaginal plug after mating; designated E0.5) at 13.5, 15.5, and 17.5 days after conception (E13.5, 15.5, and 17.5, respectively) were anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital and the embryos quickly dissected out in cold PBS, pH 7.4 and frozen on dry ice. Mouse pups on the day of birth, designated P0 (postnatal day 0) were sacrificed and processed as above. Whole specimens were then sectioned (20-µm thick) on a cryostat (-20C), thaw-mounted on glass slides, dried overnight, and stored at -70C until needed.
Selenite Autometallography
TSQ Histofluorescence
Zinc has been demonstrated histochemically by a variety of approaches, beginning with the description of dithizone, a zinc-specific chelator, by McNary (1954) Chelatable zinc was concentrated in a variety of tissues and exhibited distinct patterns of distribution in midsagittal sections at E13.5, 15.5, 17.5, and P0. At E13.5, chelatable zinc was barely detectable by selenite (not shown). Although also very low when assessed with TSQ, some signal was observed in the digestive tract epithelium, epidermis, and cartilage (Figures 1 3). At E15.5, TSQ histofluorescence was also observed in bone (Figure 3). Selenite staining generally overlapped that of TSQ at E15.5, although some labeling of hepatocytes and blood vessels was observed (data not shown). Again, at E17.5 and P0, when most organs are fully developed, the two methods demonstrated similar patterns of zinc distribution, being most prominent in the alimentary tract and skin. The liver parenchyma at this stage was heavily labeled with the selenite method but not by TSQ. Other tissues exhibiting more moderate concentrations of zinc were pancreas, blood, cartilage, choroid plexus, and vertebrae. Tissues that displayed very little or no zinc were brain and spinal cord, striated muscle, lung, thymus, and thyroid gland. Under high-magnification light microscopic analysis, zinc appeared primarily in cell cytoplasm. The reader is referred to Figure 4 and Table 1 for an overall description of the findings at E17.5.
Alimentary Tract Chelatable zinc was observed throughout the digestive tract beginning at E13.5 and continuing through E15.5 (not shown). At these ages, tissue concentrations of zinc were low and were detected mainly by TSQ. Labeling was typically restricted to the luminal aspect of the intestinal loops. At E17.5, TSQ and selenite showed an overlapping distribution (Figure 2) and were most heavily concentrated in the columnar epithelium lining the tract, beginning at the lower esophagus. In these epithelial cells, AMG zinc particles were distributed throughout the cell, although they did not typically reach the brush border (Figures 2A and 2B). Zinc was also evident, although to a much lesser extent, in the peritoneum enveloping most of the digestive tract, in the abdominal wall, and in mesenteric adipocytes. Zinc demonstrated by TSQ exhibited a similar pattern (Figures 2C and 2D). At birth, both methods were overlapping, resembling that at E17.5 (not shown)
Liver
Vasculature Similar to the liver, blood vessels exhibited a method-specific differential zinc distribution. TSQ did not label zinc over blood vessel lumen profiles (data not shown) at any ages observed, whereas the AMG method demonstrated zinc over all blood vessels examined beginning at E15.5 and continuing through birth (Figure 5A). Silver particles did not appear to be localized to blood or endothelial cells but instead were situated over the lumen, apparently related to the plasma.
Skin
Pancreas
Bone and Cartilage
Central Nervous System
Other Areas Another strongly zincergic region observed with selenite AMG and TSQ was the tongue epithelium (not shown). Parapharyngeal lymph tissue was moderately labeled with the selenite method, although not with TSQ (not shown). Testis exhibited low to moderate labeling with both methods (data not shown), as did bladder, whereas cardiac muscle was more intensely labeled by TSQ (data not shown).
Methodological Aspects In the present study we have used two different zinc-tracing methods to assess the distribution of zinc in the mid- to late-gestation mouse embryo and on P0. Overall, the two methods, sodium selenite AMG and TSQ histofluorescence, demonstrated a similar distribution of zinc in the developing mouse. A number of exceptions are noted above. For example, the liver was heavily labeled with the AMG method in the late prenatal and neonatal mouse but exhibited virtually no fluorescence with the TSQ method. This type of difference might be attributed to the fact that selenite AMG traces zinc indirectly, i.e., it is based on the complexing of zinc ions with an anion, e.g., selenite (Danscher 1982
It is noteworthy that the distribution of AMG reaction we observed in the liver is reminiscent of the staining patterns reported there previously for metallothioneins (MTs) I/II (Nishimura et al. 1989
To address the issue of a possible false-positive reaction with selenite AMG, we employed a negative control, i.e., application of developer to sections derived from animals not previously exposed to selenite. Gold, silver, and mercury are the three metal species most likely to produce a spurious reaction (Danscher 1996
A major consideration in employing both protocols is the dependence of the selenite method on various biological factors (e.g., Slomianka et al. 1990
Although the present work assessed only chelatable zinc, our findings largely correlate with published concentrations of total tissue zinc (Table 1). This suggests that "free" or chelatable zinc, which exists as a fraction of total zinc, is maintained in balance with protein-bound intracellular zinc, possibly being stored and released as needed. Recent studies using fluorescent resonance energy transfer (FRET) have provided important support for this idea, demonstrating, for example, that nitric oxide induces release of zinc bound to metallothionein (Pearce et al. 2000
Functional Aspects of Chelatable Zinc
Another area in which zinc distribution can readily be related to function is bone, where it is known to be stored (Jackson 1989
For decades zinc has been regarded as an essential element for the normal physiology of skin (PerafanRiveros et al. 2002
The CNS is one area of the developing mouse in which chelatable zinc, with the exception of the choroid plexus and spinal cord, is conspicuously absent. Areas of the mouse brain that contain high concentrations of free zinc postnatally, e.g., the hippocampus and amygdala, exhibit virtually no chelatable zinc before birth. It is interesting in this regard that, postnatally, the cerebellum contains among the highest concentrations of (total) zinc in the brain (Takeda et al. 2001 Our study shows that, with a few outstanding exceptions such as brain, "free" or loosely bound zinc is present and is heterogeneously distributed throughout the fetal mouse. Furthermore, we have observed that chelatable zinc is particularly abundant in those organs known to possess high concentrations of (total) zinc. This suggests, first of all, a well-regulated system of zinc homeostasis, even at this early age. Second, it suggests a role for zinc in a wide variety of biological processes, especially because this zinc is present in its most readily usable form. Further research is needed to elucidate the specific functions subserved zinc in the various organs in which it is concentrated.
Supported by BGNegev (#3341) to IS and WFS. We wish to thank Dr Gershon Perach for assistance in data analysis.
Received for publication October 30, 2003; accepted December 17, 2003
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