title: High- and low-voltage activated calcium currents are expressed by neurons cultured from embryonic rat neostriatum.
abstract: Current-clamp studies have shown that voltage-dependent Ca currents are present in rat neostriatal neurons. Although these studies have provided evidence for the presence of high-voltage activated Ca channels, it has been unclear whether low-voltage activated channels are also present. Using the whole-cell variant of the patch-clamp technique, we have studied isolated Ca currents in an attempt to answer this question. We have found that both high- and low-voltage activated calcium currents are expressed by neostriatal neurons cultured from embryonic rat brain. These currents are similar in voltage-dependence and pharmacology to those found in other brain neurons.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, College of Medicine, University of Tennessee, Memphis 38163.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bargas
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Surmeier
authors.forename: S T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Kitai
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000502:physiology*; D002413:Cations, Divalent / Q000494:pharmacology; D003342:Corpus Striatum / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D004056:Differential Threshold; D004594:Electrophysiology; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats / Q000196:embryology; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D002413:Cations, Divalent; D002118:Calcium