title: Calcimycin potentiates responses of rat hippocampal neurons to N-methyl-D-aspartate.
abstract: We examined the effect of elevating intracellular calcium ([Ca2+]i) on responses to iontophoretically applied N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA), and quisqualate in CA1 neurons of the hippocampal slice. Topical application of calcimycin (A23187), a calcium ionophore, potentiated responses to NMDA but not to quisqualate. This potentiation was prevented by loading cells with the calcium chelator, BAPTA, suggesting that the action of calcimycin on NMDA receptors was mediated by an elevation of [Ca2+]i in the recorded cell. The potentiation was also recorded in voltage-clamped and in cesium-loaded cells, suggesting that it was not mediated by non-specific changes in voltage or input resistance of the cell that may have resulted from the rise in [Ca2+]i. We propose that intracellular calcium plays a crucial role in regulating the activity of the NMDA subtype of L-glutamate receptor.
authors.affiliation: Center for Neuroscience, Weizmann Institute, Rehovot, Israel.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Markram
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Segal
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000001:Calcimycin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004357:Drug Synergism; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007700:Kinetics; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000187:drug effects; D016202:N-Methylaspartate / Q000494:pharmacology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D011712:Pyramidal Tracts / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D016318:Quisqualic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D000001:Calcimycin; D016202:N-Methylaspartate; D016318:Quisqualic Acid