title: Selective stimulation of excitatory amino acid receptor subtypes and the survival of granule cells in culture: effect of quisqualate and AMPA.
abstract: Differentiating granule cells develop survival requirements in vitro which can be met by treatment with high K+ or excitatory amino acids. Promotion of cell survival by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) or kainate has already been established and here we report that treatment of the cells with alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole-propionate (AMPA) or quisqualate (QA) also leads to cell rescue. In comparison with the effect of NMDA, the influence of AMPA/QA is small, resulting in a 20-30% increase in cell survival, with a peak at a very narrow concentration range (0.5-2.0 microM QA and 5-10 microM AMPA). The effect is exclusive to AMPA receptor stimulation, since stimulation of metabotropic glutamate receptors with (1S3R)-1-amino-cyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylic acid (ACPD) has no effect. Furthermore, AMPA/QA rescue of cells is blocked by ionotropic non-NMDA receptor antagonists, 6,7-dinitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (DNQX) and 2,3-dihydroxy-6-nitro-7-sulfamoyl-benzoquinoxaline (NBQX). In addition, both nifedipine and dizolcipline (MK-801) interfered with the cell survival promoting effect of AMPA, suggesting that the influence of AMPA is mediated via calcium influx involving both depolarization-activated voltage sensitive calcium channels and NMDA receptors stimulated as a result of AMPA-induced release of glutamate. Possible reasons for the small cell survival promoting effect of AMPA/QA compared with the influence of high K+ or NMDA are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Neurosciences, Netherlands Institute for Brain Research, AZ Amsterdam.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hack
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Balázs
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects*; D016318:Quisqualic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D018091:Receptors, AMPA / Q000187:drug effects*; D018094:Receptors, Metabotropic Glutamate / Q000187:drug effects; D018350:alpha-Amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D018091:Receptors, AMPA; D018094:Receptors, Metabotropic Glutamate; D018350:alpha-Amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic Acid; D016318:Quisqualic Acid