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Title: Quantitative autoradiographic characterization of GA-BA sub B receptors in mammalian central nervous system

Miscellaneous ·
OSTI ID:6531368

The inhibitory effects of the amino acid neurotransmitter {gamma}-aminobutyric acid (GABA) within the nervous system appear to be mediated through two distinct classes of receptors: GABA{sub A} and GABA{sub B} receptors. A quantitative autoradiographic method with {sup 3}H-GABA was developed to examine the hypotheses that GABA{sub A} and GABA{sub B} sites have distinct anatomical distributions, pharmacologic properties, and synaptic localizations within the rodent nervous system. The method was also applied to a comparative study of these receptors in postmortem human brain from individuals afflicted with Alzheimer's disease and those without neurologic disease. The results indicated that GABA{sub B} receptors occur in fewer numbers and have a lower affinity for GABA than GABA{sub A} receptors in both rodent and human brain. Within rodent brain, the distribution of these two receptor populations were clearly distinct. GABA{sub B} receptors were enriched in the medial habenula, interpeduncular nucleus, cerebellar molecular layer and olfactory glomerular layer. After selective lesions of postsynaptic neurons of the corticostriatal and perforant pathway, both GABA{sub B} and GABA{sub A} receptors were significantly decreased in number. Lesions of the presynaptic limbs of the perforant but not the corticostriatal pathway resulted in upregulation of both GABA receptors in the area of innervation. GABA{sub B} receptors were also upregulated in CA3 dendritic regions after destruction of dentate granule neurons.

Research Organization:
Michigan Univ., Ann Arbor, MI (USA)
OSTI ID:
6531368
Resource Relation:
Other Information: Thesis (Ph. D.)
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English