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An ambiguous fast synapse: a new twist in the tale of two transmitters

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Abstract

Jo and Schlichter describe GABA and ATP corelease from the same presynaptic cell, which suggests that a dorsal horn synapse could be excitatory or inhibitory depending on its postsynaptic receptors or the amount of transmitter released.

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Figure 1: Possible mechanisms to explain how the balance of P2X-receptor-mediated excitation versus GABAA-receptor-mediated inhibition could be altered to set the net 'sign' of this ambiguous synapse, which releases both ATP and GABA as fast neurotransmitters.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physiology University of Toronto, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, M5G 1X8, Ontario, Canada

    Michael W. Salter

  2. Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics, McGill University, Montréal, H3G 1Y6, Québec, Canada

    Yves De Koninck

Authors
  1. Michael W. Salter
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  2. Yves De Koninck
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Salter, M., De Koninck, Y. An ambiguous fast synapse: a new twist in the tale of two transmitters . Nat Neurosci 2, 199–200 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/6296

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