Intrastriatal injections of quinolinic acid induce a pattern of neuronal degeneration similar to that seen in Huntington disease. In the present study, nerve growth factor (NGF) crossed the blood-brain barrier in a dose-dependent fashion following intravenous infusion when conjugated to an antibody directed against the transferrin receptor (OX-26). Intravenous injections of the OX-26-NGF conjugate selectively prevented the loss of striatal choline acetyltransferase-immunoreactive neurons which normally occurs following quinolinic acid administration relative to control rats receiving vehicle or a nonconjugated mixture of OX-26 and NGF. These data demonstrate that a neurotrophic factor-antibody conjugate can prevent the degeneration of central NGF-responsive neurons following systemic administration.