Transport of neurotransmitter precursors into cultured cells

Clones of mouse neuroblastoma provide many model systems for the study of the biochemistry of the mammalian neurone. Because transport of precursor molecules into the cell is an important first step in neurotransmitter biosynthesis, adrenergic and cholinergic clones were derived, in available glial and fibroblast lines. Differences in thermodynamic and kinetic parameters for transport of a compound into various cell types might reflect differences in utilization of that compound within the cell. Cells transport choline with greater affinity than they transport phenylalanine or tyrosine, but there is no significant correlation between transport parameters and cell type.