title: Vasoactive intestinal peptide and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide potentiate c-fos expression induced by glutamate in cultured cortical neurons.
abstract: Previous reports have demonstrated that glutamate stimulates c-fos mRNA expression in primary cultures of mouse cerebral cortical neurons. We show here that vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) induces c-fos mRNA expression; however, this effect of VIP is completely inhibited by the noncompetitive NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801, therefore indicating that VIP stimulates c-fos expression in a glutamate-dependent manner. A similar effect was observed with pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide27 (PACAP27). At the intracellular level, coactivation of protein kinases A and C mediates the glutamate-dependent stimulation of c-fos expression evoked by VIP, because either H-89 or staurosporin inhibits the effect of VIP as well as that of glutamate. These results point to a "biochemical AND gate" mechanism, which implies the obligatory activation of both protein kinases A and C in the transduction of c-fos expression. In summary, this article provides evidence that VIP and PACAP27 potentiate the effect of glutamate, the principal effector on c-fos expression, suggesting that both peptides can increase the "throughput" or "strength" of glutamate-containing circuits in the cerebral cortex.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Recherche Neurologique, CHUV, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gasser
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Magistretti
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D004357:Drug Synergism; D015870:Gene Expression / Q000187:drug effects*; D016762:Genes, fos / Q000187:drug effects*; D018698:Glutamic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology; D009479:Neuropeptides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018377:Neurotransmitter Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D051219:Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D014660:Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: C495402:Adcyap1 protein, mouse; D009479:Neuropeptides; D018377:Neurotransmitter Agents; D051219:Pituitary Adenylate Cyclase-Activating Polypeptide; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D014660:Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide; D018698:Glutamic Acid