title: CHARACTERIZING CALCIUM INFLUX VIA VOLTAGE- AND LIGAND-GATED CALCIUM CHANNELS IN EMBRYONICALLIGATORNEURONS IN CULTURE.
abstract: Vertebrate brains share many features in common. Early in development, both the hindbrain and diencephalon are built similarly. Only later in time do differences in morphology occur. Factors that could potentially influence such changes include certain physiological properties of neurons. As an initial step to investigate this problem, embryonicAlligatorbrain neurons were cultured and calcium responses were characterized. The present report is the first to document culture ofAlligatorbrain neurons in artificial cerebrospinal fluid (ACSF) as well as in standard mammalian tissue culture medium supplemented with growth factors.Alligatorbrain neuron cultures were viable for at least 1 week with unipolar neurites emerging by 24 hours. Employing Fura-2 AM, robust depolarization-induced calcium influx, was observed in these neurons. Using selective blockers of the voltage-gated calcium channels, the contributions of N-, P/Q-, R-, T-, and L-type channels in these neurons were assessed and their presence documented. Lastly,Alligatorbrain neurons were challenged with an excitotoxic stimulus (glutamate + glycine) where delayed calcium deregulation could be prevented by a classical NMDA receptor antagonist.
authors.affiliation: Paul and Carole Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA ; Department of Neurology, The First Hospital of Jilin University, Jilin University, Xinmin Street 71 ; Changchun, 130021, Jilin Province, China.
authors.forename: Weina
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ju
authors.forename: Jiang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Michael B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Pritz
authors.forename: Rajesh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Khanna
keywords: Alligator; Calcium mobilization; Immunoblot; NMDA receptor; Neuronal culture; Voltage-gated calcium channels