Physiological, pharmacological, and immunohistochemical characterisation of juxtacellularly labelled neurones in rat nucleus tractus solitarius.
The pharmacology and anatomy of neurones in the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) have proved to be difficult to study in vivo because of their generally small size and high packing density. To overcome these problems, we have developed an approach that combines drug application through multibarrelled electrodes with juxtacellular labelling via an attached single-barrelled electrode followed by immunohistochemical processing. This approach has allowed us to assess the responses of individual NTS neurones in vivo to ionotropic glutamate receptor agonists and antagonists and then, to determine whether the neurones expressed the glutamate receptor subunits, GLUR2,3 and NMDAR2a,b. It should also be possible to extend these techniques further and correlate morphology with these features and to examine pharmacologically characterised, dye-filled neurones at the ultrastructural level.
Jones
G A
GA
Department of Physiology, Royal Free and University College Medical School, University College London, UK. g.jones@rfc.ucl.ac.uk
Llewellyn-Smith
I J
IJ
Jordan
D
D
D000818:Animals; D018690:Excitatory Amino Acid Agonists / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007478:Iontophoresis; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D018091:Receptors, AMPA / Q000378:metabolism; D017470:Receptors, Glutamate / Q000378:metabolism*; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000378:metabolism; D017552:Solitary Nucleus / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*
D018690:Excitatory Amino Acid Agonists; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; D018091:Receptors, AMPA; D017470:Receptors, Glutamate; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; C121001:NR2B NMDA receptor; C104723:glutamate receptor ionotropic, AMPA 3; C104722:glutamate receptor ionotropic, AMPA 2