title: Diabetes, but not stress, reduces neuronal nitric oxide synthase expression in rat hippocampus: implications for hippocampal synaptic plasticity.
abstract: Neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) plays an important role in synaptic plasticity and learning and memory. Since deficits in long-term potentiation (LTP) and learning are observed in diabetic rats and following stress, we examined the expression of nNOS mRNA and protein in the hippocampus of streptozotocin (STZ) diabetic rats and rats subjected to restraint stress. Stress did not modulate nNOS expression, while nNOS mRNA and protein levels were significantly decreased in the hippocampus of STZ diabetic rats. These results suggest that: (1) decreased expression of nNOS mRNA and protein may contribute to deficits in hippocampal dependent learning and LTP in diabetic rats; and (2) other mechanisms may be involved in stress mediated decreases in hippocampal synaptic plasticity.
authors.affiliation: Haroldand Margaret Milliken Hatch Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10021, USA. lpreagan@gw.med.sc.edu
authors.forename: Lawrence P
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Reagan
authors.forename: Bruce S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: McEwen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000201:enzymology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000150:complications* / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D015536:Down-Regulation / Q000235:genetics; D005938:Glucocorticoids / Q000378:metabolism; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D017774:Long-Term Potentiation / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000201:enzymology*; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000378:metabolism; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013312:Stress, Physiological / Q000150:complications* / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D005938:Glucocorticoids; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase