Abstract
AMPA receptors are glutamate-gated ion channels that mediate most excitatory transmission in the brain and spinal cord. The type and number of AMPA receptors present at each synapse are regulated physiologically and determine the strength of the synaptic response. High-resolution imaging techniques such as electron microscopy (EM) can inform about the ultrastructural localization of AMPA receptors in native tissue; in addition, immunogold staining allows investigators to count the number of gold particles present in different subcellular compartments, and to evaluate quantitatively the localization of AMPA receptors within dendritic spines. In this chapter we describe step-by-step procedures to obtain immuno-electron microscope images of AMPA receptors in organotypic hippocampal slices. This method can be adapted to investigate the location of other ionotropic glutamate receptors in brain slices.
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Kramer, A.A., Petersen, A.N., Gerges, N.Z. (2016). Electron Microscopy Analysis of AMPA Receptors in Dendritic Spines. In: Popescu, G. (eds) Ionotropic Glutamate Receptor Technologies. Neuromethods, vol 106. Humana Press, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-2812-5_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-2812-5_5
Publisher Name: Humana Press, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-2811-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-2812-5
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