Potentiation of NMDA receptor currents by arachidonic acid.

Arachidonic acid is released by phospholipase A2 when activation of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors by neurotransmitter glutamate raises the calcium concentration in neurons, for example during the initiation of long-term potentiation and during brain anoxia. Here we investigate the effect of arachidonic acid on glutamate-gated ion channels by whole-cell clamping isolated cerebellar granule cells. Arachidonic acid potentiates, and makes more transient, the current through NMDA receptor channels, and slightly reduces the current through non-NMDA receptor channels. Potentiation of the NMDA receptor current results from an increase in channel open probability, with no change in open channel current. We observe potentiation even with saturating levels of agonist at the glutamate- and glycine-binding sites on these channels; it does not result from conversion of arachidonic acid to lipoxygenase or cyclooxygenase derivatives, or from activation of protein kinase C. Arachidonic acid may act by binding to a site on the NMDA receptor, or by modifying the receptor's lipid environment. Our results suggest that arachidonic acid released by activation of NMDA (or other) receptors will potentiate NMDA receptor currents, and thus amplify increases in intracellular calcium concentration caused by glutamate. This may explain why inhibition of phospholipase A2 blocks the induction of long-term potentiation.     

Long-term potentiation and NMDA receptors in rat visual cortex

In the hippocampus, which is phylogenetically older than the cerebral neocortex, high frequency stimulation of afferent pathways leads to long-term potentiation (LTP) of synaptic transmission. This use-dependent malleability is of considerable interest because it may serve as a substrate for memory processes. However, in the neocortex, whose involvement in learning is undisputed, attempts to demonstrate LTP have remained inconclusive. Here we use intracellular recording techniques to show that LTP can be induced by high frequency stimulation of the optic radiation in slices of the visual cortex of adult rats. We identify as a necessary prerequisite for the induction of LTP the activation of the membrane channel that is associated with the NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor. Selective blockade of this receptor system with DL-2-amino-5-phosphonovalerate consistently prevents LTP as in most hippocampal pathways. In most cortical neurons the activation of the NMDA mechanism and hence the induction of LTP in these experiments requires a concomitant reduction of GABAergic inhibition by low doses of the GABAA antagonist bicuculline. This indicates that in the neocortex the activation threshold of the NMDA-mechanism and consequently the susceptibility to LTP, are strongly influenced by inhibitory processes.     

Rac GTPases control axon growth, guidance and branching

Growth, guidance and branching of axons are all essential processes for the precise wiring of the nervous system. Rho family GTPases transduce extracellular signals to regulate the actin cytoskeleton. In particular, Rac has been implicated in axon growth and guidance. Here we analyse the loss-of-function phenotypes of three Rac GTPases in Drosophila mushroom body neurons. We show that progressive loss of combined Rac1, Rac2 and Mtl activity leads first to defects in axon branching, then guidance, and finally growth. Expression of a Rac1 effector domain mutant that does not bind Pak rescues growth, partially rescues guidance, but does not rescue branching defects of Rac mutant neurons. Mosaic analysis reveals both cell autonomous and non-autonomous functions for Rac GTPases, the latter manifesting itself as a strong community effect in axon guidance and branching. These results demonstrate the central role of Rac GTPases in multiple aspects of axon development in vivo, and suggest that axon growth, guidance and branching could be controlled by differential activation of Rac signalling pathways.     

Dendrite growth and micromechanical properties of rapidly solidified ternary Ni-Fe-Ti alloy

The rapid solidification of undercooled liquid Ni_(45)Fe_(40)Ti_(15)alloy was realized by glass fluxing technique.The microstructure of this alloy consists of primaryγ-(Fe,Ni)phase and a small amount of interdendritic pseudobinary eutectic.The primaryγ-(Fe,Ni)phase transferred from coarse dendrite to fragmented dendrite and the lamellar eutectic became fractured with the increase of undercooling.The growth velocity ofγ-(Fe,Ni)dendrite increased following a power relation with the rise of undercooling.The addition of solute Ti suppressed the rapid growth ofγ-(Fe,Ni)dendrite,as compared with the calculation results of Fe-Ni alloy based on LKT model.The microhardness values of the alloy and the primaryγ-(Fe,Ni)phase increased by 1.5 times owing to the microstructural refinement caused by the rapid dendrite growth.The difference was enlarged as undercooling increases,resulting from the enhanced hardening effects on the alloy from the increased grain boundaries and the second phase.     

Regulation of NMDA receptor desensitization in mouse hippocampal neurons by glycine

Responses to the excitatory amino acid N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) are markedly potentiated by nanomolar concentrations of glycine. This is due to the action of glycine at a novel strychnine-resistant binding site with an anatomical distribution identical to that for NMDA receptors, suggesting that the NMDA receptor channel complex contains at least two classes of amino-acid recognition site. Antagonists at the glycine-binding site associated with NMDA receptors act as potent non-competitive antagonists, but do not alter the mean open time or conductance, as estimated by fluctuation analysis. The mechanisms by which glycine acts on NMDA receptors are unknown, but single-channel recording experiments show an increase in opening frequency with no change in mean open time or conductance, suggesting that glycine could regulate transitions to states that are intermediate between binding of NMDA receptor agonists and ion-channel gating. It has been suggested that glycine acts as a co-agonist at the NMDA receptor, and that responses to NMDA cannot be obtained in the complete absence of glycine, but in these experiments the response to NMDA was measured at equilibrium, and it is unlikely that sufficient temporal resolution was achieved to detect rapid alterations in receptor gating. Using a fast perfusion system we find that glycine regulates desensitization at NMDA receptors; this has a major effect on the response to NMDA measured at equilibrium, as would occur with slower applications of agonist. Reduction of NMDA receptor desensitization by glycine provides an example of a novel mechanism for regulation of ion-channel activity.     

EGF receptor transactivation by G-protein-coupled receptors requires metalloproteinase cleavage of proHB-EGF

Cross-communication between different signalling systems allows the integration of the great diversity of stimuli that a cell receives under varying physiological situations. The transactivation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-dependent signalling pathways upon stimulation of G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), which are critical for the mitogenic activity of ligands such as lysophosphatidic acid, endothelin, thrombin, bombesin and carbachol, provides evidence for such an interconnected communication network. Here we show that EGFR transactivation upon GPCR stimulation involves proHB-EGF and a metalloproteinase activity that is rapidly induced upon GPCR-ligand interaction. We show that inhibition of proHB-EGF processing blocks GPCR-induced EGFR transactivation and downstream signals. The pathophysiological significance of this mechanism is demonstrated by inhibition of constitutive EGFR activity upon treatment of PC3 prostate carcinoma cells with the metalloproteinase inhibitor batimastat. Together, our results establish a new mechanistic concept for cross-communication among different signalling systems.     

Molecular cloning and characterization of the rat NMDA receptor.

A complementary DNA encoding the rat NMDA receptor has been cloned and characterized. The single protein encoded by the cDNA forms a receptor-channel complex that has electrophysiological and pharmacological properties characteristic of the NMDA receptor. This protein has a significant sequence similarity to the AMPA/kainate receptors and contains four putative transmembrane segments following a large extracellular domain. The NMDA receptor messenger RNA is expressed in neuronal cells throughout the brain regions, particularly in the hippocampus, cerebral cortex and cerebellum.     

Autistic-like social behaviour in Shank2-mutant mice improved by restoring NMDA receptor function

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of conditions characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and restricted and repetitive behaviours. ASD is a highly heritable disorder involving various genetic determinants. Shank2 (also known as ProSAP1) is a multi-domain scaffolding protein and signalling adaptor enriched at excitatory neuronal synapses, and mutations in the human SHANK2 gene have recently been associated with ASD and intellectual disability. Although ASD-associated genes are being increasingly identified and studied using various approaches, including mouse genetics, further efforts are required to delineate important causal mechanisms with the potential for therapeutic application. Here we show that Shank2-mutant (Shank2(-/-)) mice carrying a mutation identical to the ASD-associated microdeletion in the human SHANK2 gene exhibit ASD-like behaviours including reduced social interaction, reduced social communication by ultrasonic vocalizations, and repetitive jumping. These mice show a marked decrease in NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) glutamate receptor (NMDAR) function. Direct stimulation of NMDARs with D-cycloserine, a partial agonist of NMDARs, normalizes NMDAR function and improves social interaction in Shank2(-/-) mice. Furthermore, treatment of Shank2(-/-) mice with a positive allosteric modulator of metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5), which enhances NMDAR function via mGluR5 activation, also normalizes NMDAR function and markedly enhances social interaction. These results suggest that reduced NMDAR function may contribute to the development of ASD-like phenotypes in Shank2(-/-) mice, and mGluR modulation of NMDARs offers a potential strategy to treat ASD.     

A chimaeric receptor allows insulin to stimulate tyrosine kinase activity of epidermal growth factor receptor

The cell surface receptors for insulin and epidermal growth factor (EGF) appear to share a common evolutionary origin, as suggested by structural similarity of cysteine-rich regions in their extracellular domains and a highly conserved tyrosine-specific protein kinase domain. Only minor similarity is found outside this catalytic domain, as expected for receptors that have different ligand specificities and generate different biological signals. The EGF receptor is a single polypeptide chain but the insulin receptor consists of distinct alpha and beta subunits that function as an alpha 2 beta 2 heterotetrameric receptor complex. Provoked by this major structural difference in two receptors that carry out parallel functions, we have designed a chimaeric receptor molecule comprising the extracellular portion of the insulin receptor joined to the transmembrane and intracellular domains of the EGF receptor to investigate whether one ligand will activate the tyrosine kinase domain of the receptor for the other ligand. We show here that the EGF receptor kinase domain of the chimaeric protein, expressed transiently in simian cells, is activated by insulin binding. This strongly suggests that insulin and EGF receptors employ closely related or identical mechanisms for signal transduction across the plasma membrane.     

Hedgehog signalling activity of Smoothened requires phosphorylation by protein kinase A and casein kinase I

The Hedgehog (Hh) family of secreted proteins governs cell growth and patterning in animal development. The Hh signal is transduced by the seven-transmembrane protein Smoothened (Smo); however, the mechanism by which Smo is regulated remains largely unknown. Here we show that protein kinase A (PKA) and casein kinase I (CKI) regulate Smo cell-surface accumulation and activity in response to Hh. Blocking PKA or CKI activity in the Drosophila wing disc prevents Hh-induced Smo accumulation and attenuates pathway activity, whereas increasing PKA activity promotes Smo accumulation and pathway activation. We show that PKA and CKI phosphorylate Smo at several sites, and that phosphorylation-deficient forms of Smo fail to accumulate on the cell surface and are unable to transduce the Hh signal. Conversely, phosphorylation-mimicking Smo variants show constitutive cell-surface expression and signalling activity. Furthermore, we find that the levels of Smo cell-surface expression and activity correlate with its levels of phosphorylation. Our data indicate that Hh induces progressive Smo phosphorylation by PKA and CKI, leading to elevation of Smo cell-surface levels and signalling activity.     

Identification by mutagenesis of a Mg(2+)-block site of the NMDA receptor channel.

The N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor channel is highly permeable to Ca2+ but is blocked by Mg2+ in a voltage-dependent manner. These characteristics are essential for the NMDA receptor channel to mediate the induction of long-term potentiation of synaptic efficacy, a form of activity-dependent synaptic plasticity thought to underlie memory, learning and development. Recent studies have revealed the molecular and functional diversity of the NMDA receptor channel subunits, which are classified into the epsilon and zeta families according to the amino-acid sequence homology. Here we report that replacement by glutamine of asparagine 598 in putative transmembrane segment M2 of the zeta 1 subunit, strongly reduces the sensitivity of the heteromeric epsilon 2/zeta 1 NMDA receptor channel to Mg2+ block. The corresponding mutation of the epsilon 2 subunit has a similar effect. Furthermore, the heteromeric epsilon 2/zeta 1 NMDA receptor channel with the mutation on both subunits shows greatly reduced sensitivity to MK-801, a channel blocker of the NMDA receptor channel, but is still susceptible to inhibition by Zn2+. These findings suggest that the conserved asparagine residue in segment M2 constitutes a Mg(2+)-block site of the NMDA receptor channel, and that the MK-801 site overlaps the Mg2+ site.     

Argos inhibits epidermal growth factor receptor signalling by ligand sequestration

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) has critical functions in development and in many human cancers. During development, the spatial extent of EGFR signalling is regulated by feedback loops comprising both well-understood activators and less well-characterized inhibitors. In Drosophila melanogaster the secreted protein Argos functions as the only known extracellular inhibitor of EGFR, with clearly identified roles in multiple stages of development. Argos is only expressed when the Drosophila EGFR (DER) is activated at high levels, and downregulates further DER signalling. Although there is ample genetic evidence that Argos inhibits DER activation, the biochemical mechanism has not been established. Here we show that Argos inhibits DER signalling without interacting directly with the receptor, but instead by sequestering the DER-activating ligand Spitz. Argos binds tightly to the EGF motif of Spitz and forms a 1:1 (Spitz:Argos) complex that does not bind DER in vitro or at the cell surface. Our results provide an insight into the mechanism of Argos function, and suggest new strategies for EGFR inhibitor design.     

Induction of vanilloid receptor channel activity by protein kinase C

Capsaicin or vanilloid receptors (VRs) participate in the sensation of thermal and inflammatory pain. The cloned (VR1) and native VRs are non-selective cation channels directly activated by harmful heat, extracellular protons and vanilloid compounds. However, considerable attention has been focused on identifying other signalling pathways in VR activation; it is known that VR1 is also expressed in non-sensory tissue and may mediate inflammatory rather than acute thermal pain. Here we show that activation of protein kinase C (PKC) induces VR1 channel activity at room temperature in the absence of any other agonist. We also observed this effect in native VRs from sensory neurons, and phorbol esters induced a vanilloid-sensitive Ca2+ rise in these cells. Moreover, the pro-inflammatory peptide, bradykinin, and the putative endogenous ligand, anandamide, respectively induced and enhanced VR activity, in a PKC-dependent manner. These results suggest that PKC may link a range of stimuli to the activation of VRs.     

High-affinity NGF binding requires coexpression of the trk proto-oncogene and the low-affinity NGF receptor.

Nerve growth factor (NGF) interacts with two different low-affinity receptors that can be distinguished by affinity crosslinking. Reconstitution experiments by membrane fusion and transient transfection into heterologous cells indicate that high-affinity NGF binding requires coexpression and binding to both the low-affinity NGF receptor and the tyrosine kinase trk gene product. These studies reveal a new growth factor receptor-mediated mechanism of cellular differentiation involving trk and the low-affinity NGF receptor.     

Ocular dominance shift in kitten visual cortex caused by imbalance in retinal electrical activity

Monocular lid suture during the sensitive period early in the life of a kitten disrupts normal development of inputs from the two eyes to the visual cortex, causing a decrease in the fraction of cortical cells responding to the deprived eye. Such an ocular dominance shift has been assumed to depend on patterned visual experience, because no change in cortical physiology is produced by inequalities between the two eyes in retinal illumination or temporally modulated diffuse light stimulation. A higher-level process, involving gating signals from areas outside striate cortex, has been proposed to ensure that sustained changes in synaptic efficacy occur only in response to behaviourally significant visual inputs. To test whether such a process is necessary for ocular dominance plasticity, we treated 4-week-old kittens with visual deprivation and monocular tetrodotoxin (TTX) injections to create an imbalance in the electrical activities of the two retinas in the absence of patterned vision. After 1 week of treatment we determined the ocular dominance distribution of single units in primary visual cortex. In all kittens studied, a significant ocular dominance shift was found. In addition to this physiological change, there was an anatomical change in the lateral geniculate nucleus, where cells were larger in laminae receiving input from the more active eye. Our results indicate that patterned vision is not necessary for visual cortical plasticity, and that an imbalance in spontaneous retinal activity alone can produce a significant ocular dominance shift.