Binding of 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-di-p-chlorophenylethane (DDT) with subcellular fractions of rat brain

DDT (1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-di-p-chlorophenylethane) and DDE (1,1-dichloro-2,2-di-p-chlorophenylethylene, a non-insecticidal analogue of DDT) were found to bind with various nerve components of rat brain. The amount of DDT binding exceeded that of DDE only in the fraction containing mainly the nerve endings. Among various components in the nerve-ending fraction, a subfraction containing mainly the pre- and post-synaptic complexes had the highest affinity for DDT in comparison with that for DDE. By using an ‘acetone-powdering’ technique on brain preparations, the Sephadex-column method was shown to provide reliable results for studies on the binding of DDT or DDE with soluble proteins in the nerve tissues. From these results it was concluded that DDE had a higher affinity for soluble components of the rat brain than did DDT.