title: Differential sensitivity of medium- and large-sized striatal neurons to NMDA but not kainate receptor activation in the rat.
abstract: Infrared videomicroscopy and differential interference contrast optics were used to identify medium- and large-sized neurons in striatal slices from young rats. Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings were obtained to compare membrane currents evoked by application of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) and kainate. Inward currents and current densities induced by NMDA were significantly smaller in large- than in medium-sized striatal neurons. The negative slope conductance for NMDA currents was greater in medium- than in large-sized neurons and more depolarization was required to remove the Mg2+ blockade. In contrast, currents induced by kainate were significantly greater in large-sized neurons whilst current densities were approximately equal in both cell types. Spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents occurred frequently in medium-sized neurons but were relatively infrequent in large-sized neurons. Excitatory postsynaptic currents evoked by electrical stimulation were smaller in large- than in medium-sized neurons. A final set of experiments assessed a functional consequence of the differential sensitivity of medium- and large-sized neurons to NMDA. Cell swelling was used to examine changes in somatic area in both neuronal types after prolonged application of NMDA or kainate. NMDA produced a time-dependent increase in somatic area in medium-sized neurons whilst it produced only minimal changes in large interneurons. In contrast, application of kainate produced significant swelling in both medium- and large-sized cells. We hypothesize that reduced sensitivity to NMDA may be due to variations in receptor subunit composition and/or the relative density of receptors in the two cell types. These findings help define the conditions that put neurons at risk for excitotoxic damage in neurological disorders.
authors.affiliation: Mental Retardation Research Center and Brain Research Institute, UCLA School of Medicine, 760 Westwood Plaza NPI Room 58-258, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cepeda
authors.forename: J N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Itri
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Flores-Hernández
authors.forename: R S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Hurst
authors.forename: C R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Calvert
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Levine
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D016923:Cell Death / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D048429:Cell Size / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D002799:Cholinergic Fibers / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D019706:Excitatory Postsynaptic Potentials / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D007395:Interneurons / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D016202:N-Methylaspartate / Q000494:pharmacology; D017072:Neostriatum / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D009498:Neurotoxins / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D018092:Kainic Acid Receptors / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D016202:N-Methylaspartate; D009498:Neurotoxins; D018092:Kainic Acid Receptors; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate