Distribution of butyrylcholinesterase in the human amygdala and hippocampal formation

The distribution of the major cholinergic regulatory enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE, EC 3.1.1.7) has been extensively studied in the human brain, but the distribution of the closely related enzyme butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE, EC 3.1.1.8) is largely unknown. Because of the importance of BuChE and AChE in Alzheimer's disease, we have studied the distribution of BuChE in the normal human amygdala and hippocampal formation and compared it with that of AChE by using histochemical techniques.