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GABA Currents (gaba + current)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Life Sciences	50%

Selected Abstracts

Genetic and pharmacological studies of GluR5 modulation of inhibitory synaptic transmission in the anterior cingulate cortex of adult mice

DEVELOPMENTAL NEUROBIOLOGY, Issue 2 2007
Long-Jun Wu
Abstract In the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), GluR5-containing kainate receptor mediated the small portion of excitatory postsynaptic current. However, little is known about its role in modulation of neurotransmitter release in this brain region. In the present study, we address this question by using selective GluR5 agonist and antagonist, as well as GluR5,/, mice. Our results showed that activation of GluR5 induced action potential-dependent GABA release, which is also required for the activation of voltage-dependent calcium channel and Ca2+ influx. The effect of GluR5 activation is selective to the GABAergic, but not glutamatergic synaptic transmission. Endogenous activation of GluR5 also enhanced GABA release to ACC pyramidal neurons and the corresponding postsynaptic tonic GABA current. Our results suggest the somatodendritic, but not presynaptic GluR5, in modulation of GABA release. The endogenous GluR5 activation and the subsequent tonic GABA current may play an inhibitory role in ACC-related brain functions. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 67: 146,157, 2007. [source]

Altering the Relative Abundance of GABAA Receptor Subunits Changes GABA- and Ethanol-Responses in Xenopus Oocytes

ALCOHOLISM, Issue 6 2009
Joyce H. Hurley
Background:, Variations in GABRA2 and GABRG3, genes encoding the ,2 and ,3 subunits of the pentameric GABAA receptor, are associated with the risk of developing alcoholism in adults, conduct disorder at younger ages, and with differences in electroencephalographic power in the , frequency range. The SNPs associated with alcoholism did not alter the coding of these genes, and extensive DNA sequencing of GABRA2 did not find coding changes in the high-risk haplotypes. Therefore, we hypothesize that the associations arise from differences in gene expression. Methods:, Here we report studies in Xenopus oocytes to examine the functional effects of altering the relative abundance of these 2 receptor subunits on GABA current and response to ethanol, as a model of potential effects of regulatory differences. Results:, When human ,2,2,3 subunits are co-expressed, increasing the amount of the ,2 subunit mRNA increased GABA current; in contrast, increasing the amount of the ,3 subunit decreased GABA currents. Acute ethanol treatment of oocytes injected with a 1:1:1 or 2:2:1 ratio of ,2:,2:,3 subunit mRNAs resulted in significant potentiation of GABA currents, whereas ethanol inhibited GABA currents in cells injected with a 6:2:1 ratio. Overnight treatment with ethanol significantly reduced GABA currents in a manner dependent on the ratio of subunits. Conclusions:, These studies demonstrate that changes in relative expression of GABAA receptor subunits alter the response of the resulting channels to GABA and to ethanol. [source]

Downregulation of tonic GABA currents following epileptogenic stimulation of rat hippocampal cultures

THE JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 2 2006
Jin-shun Qi
Deficits in GABAergic inhibitory transmission are a hallmark of temporal lobe epilepsy and have been replicated in animal and tissue culture models of epilepsy. GABAergic inhibition comprises phasic and tonic inhibition that is mediated by synaptic and extrasynaptic GABAA receptors, respectively. We have recently demonstrated that chronic stimulation with cyclothiazide (CTZ) or kainic acid (KA) induces robust epileptiform activity in hippocampal neurons both in vitro and in vivo. Here, we report a downregulation of tonic GABA inhibition after chronic epileptogenic stimulation of rat hippocampal cultures. Chronic pretreatment of hippocampal neurons with CTZ or KA resulted in a marked reduction in GABAergic inhibition, as shown by a significant decrease in whole-cell GABA currents and in the frequency of miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents (mIPSCs). Interestingly, synaptically localized GABAA receptors remained relatively stable, as evidenced by the unaltered amplitude of mIPSCs, as well as the unchanged punctate immunoreactivity of ,2 subunit-containing postsynaptic GABAA receptors. In contrast, tonic GABA currents, assessed either by a GABAA receptor antagonist bicuculline or a selective extrasynaptic GABAA receptor agonist THIP, were significantly reduced following epileptogenic stimulation. These results reveal a novel form of neural plasticity, that epileptogenic stimulation can selectively downregulate extrasynaptic GABAA receptors while leaving synaptic GABAA receptors unchanged. Thus, in addition to synaptic alteration of GABAergic transmission, regulation of tonic inhibition may also play an important role during epileptogenesis. [source]