Abstract
Rat brain cortex slices were used to study (1) the release of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) induced by activation of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) or non-NMDA receptors and (2) the α2-adrenoceptor-mediated modulation of NMDA-evoked 5-HT release.
Cortical slices were preincubated with [3H]5-HT in the presence of the selective noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor, maprotiline (to avoid false labelling of noradrenergic axon terminals), and then superfused with solution containing the 5-HT reuptake inhibitor, 6-nitroquipazine. In slices superfused with Mg2+-free medium, NMDA and L-glutamate, in a concentration-dependent manner, elicited an overflow of tritium. The NMDA-evoked tritium overflow was abolished by omission of Ca2+ ions, almost completely suppressed by 1.2 mM Mg2+ and only partly (by about 60%) inhibited by tetrodotoxin. Dizocilpine (formerly MK801), an antagonist at the phencyclidine site within the NMDA-gated channel, also decreased the NMDA-evoked overflow. The competitive NMDA receptor antagonist DL-(E)-2-amino-4-methyl-5-phosphono-3-pentanoic acid (CGP 37849) caused a parallel shift of the NMDA concentration-response curve to the right. The NMDA-induced tritium overflow was not affected by addition of exogenous glycine but was inhibited by 5,7-dichlorokynurenic acid, an antagonist at the glycine site of the NMDA receptor. Spermidine slightly increased the NMDA-induced tritium overflow whereas arcaine, an antagonist at the polyamine site of the NMDA-receptor, caused a decrease. Ifenprodil and eliprodil, which exhibit different affinities for NMDA receptors composed of different subunits were highly potent (in the nanomolar range) in inhibiting the NMDA-evoked tritium overflow. Noradrenaline reduced, whereas the α2-adrenoceptor antagonist idazoxan facilitated, the NMDA-evoked overflow. Idazoxan shifted the concentration-response curve of noradrenaline to the right. In slices superfused with solution containing 1.2 mM Mg2+, kainic acid or (RS)-α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid (AMPA) also caused a concentration-dependent overflow of tritium, which again was not completely (by about 75 and 50%, respectively) inhibited by tetrodotoxin. The kainate-evoked tritium overflow was inhibited by the non-NMDA receptor antagonist 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (CNQX) but not affected by CGP 37849 or arcaine. The AMPA-evoked tritium overflow was also decreased by CNQX.
It is concluded that activation of NMDA or non-NMDA receptors elicits a release of 5-HT in the rat brain cortex. The receptors are at least partly located on the serotoninergic nerve terminals. The results with ifenprodil and eliprodil are compatible with the view that the NMDA receptor involved contains the NR2B subunit. The NMDA-evoked 5-HT release is modulated by presynaptic α2-adrenoceptors.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Blier P, Galzin AM, Langer SZ (1990) Interaction between serotonin uptake inhibitor and alpha-2 adrenergic heteroreceptors in the rat hypothalamus. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 254:236–244
Carter CJ, Lloyd KG, Zivkovic B, Scatton B (1990) Ifenprodil and SL 82.0715 as cerebral antiischemic agents. III. Evidence for antagonistic effects at the polyamine modulatory site within the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor complex. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 253:475–482
Classen K, Göthert M, Schlicker E (1984) Effects of DU 24565 (6-nitroquipazine) on serotoninergic and noradrenergic neurones of the rat brain and comparison with the effects of quipazine. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 326:198–202
Cudennec A, Duverger D, Benavides J, Scatton B, Nowicki JP (1994) Effect of eliprodil, an NMDA receptor antagonist acting at the polyamine modulatory site on local cerebral glucose use in the rat brain. Brain Res 664:41–46
Fagg GE, Olpe HR, Pozza MIT, Band J, Steinmann M, Schmitz M, Portet C, Baumann P, Thedinga K, Bittiger H, Allgeier H, Heckendorn R, Angst C, Brundish D, Dingwall JG (1990) CGP 37849 and CGP 39551: novel and potent competitive N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors antagonists with oral activity. Br J Pharmacol 99:791–797
Fink K, Göthert M (1992) Presynaptic site of action underlying the ethanol-induced inhibition of norepinephrine release evoked by stimulation of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors in rat cerebral cortex. Brain Res 572:27–32
Fink K, Göthert M (1993) Modulation of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-stimulated noradrenaline release in rat brain cortex by presynaptic α2-adrenoceptors. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 348:372–378
Fink K, Göthert M, Molderings G, Schlicker E (1989) N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor-mediated stimulation of noradrenaline release, but not release of other neurotransmitters, in the rat brain cortex: receptor location, characterization and desensitization. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 339:514–521
Fink K, Bönisch H, Göthert M (1990) Presynaptic NMDA receptors stimulate noradrenaline release in the cerebral cortex. Eur J Pharmacol 185:115–117
Fink K, Schultheiß R, Göthert M (1992) Stimulation of noradrenaline release in human cerebral cortex mediated by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) and non-NMDA receptors. Br J Pharmacol 106:67–72
Fink K, Böing C, Schmitz V, Göthert M (1993) N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) stimulates serotonin (5-HT) and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) release in the rat and guinea pig brain cortex. Fundam Clin Pharmacol 7:357
Fink K, Schlicker E, Göthert M (1994) N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-stimulated noradrenaline (NA) release in rat brain cortex is modulated by presynaptic H3-receptors. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 349:113–117
Frankhuyzen AL, Mulder AH (1982) Pharmacological characterization of presynaptic a-adrenoceptors modulating [3H]noradrenaline and [3H]5-hydroxytryptamine release from slices of the hippocampus of the rat. Eur J Pharmacol 81:97–106
Furchgott RF (1972) The classification of adrenoceptors (adrenergic receptors). An evaluation from the standpoint of receptor theory. In: Blaschko H, Muscholl E (eds) Handbook of experimental pharmacology XXIII. Springer, Berlin Heidelberg New York, pp 283–335
Göthert M, Fink K (1989) Inhibition of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)- and L-glutamate-induced noradrenaline and acetylcholine release in the rat brain by ethanol. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 340:516–521
Göthert M, Fink K (1991) Stimulation of noradrenaline release in the cerebral cortex via presynaptic N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors and their pharmacological characterization. J Neural Transm 34 [Suppl]:121–127
Göthert M, Huth H (1980) Alpha-adrenoceptor-mediated modulation of 5-hydroxytryptamine release from rat brain cortex slices. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 313:21–26
Göthert M, Fink K, Böing C, Schmitz V (1994) Stimulation of [3H]serotonin release in the cerebral cortex via NMDA and non-NMDA receptors and interaction with presynaptic inhibitory auto- and heteroreceptors. Soc Neurosci Abstr 20/2:1468
Huettner JE (1991) Competitive antagonism of glycine at the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor. Biochem Pharmacol 41:9–16
Jones SM, Snell LD, Johnson KM (1987) Phencyclidine selectively inhibits N-methyl-D-aspartate-induced hippocampal [3H]norepinephrine release. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 240:492–497
Keith RA, Mangano TJ, Meiners BA, Stumpo RJ, Klika AB, Patel J, Salama AI (1989) HA-966 acts at a modulatory glycine site to inhibit N-methyl-D-aspartate-evoked neurotransmitter release. Eur J Pharmacol 166:393–400
Kemp JA, Foster AC, Leeson PD, Priestley T, Tridgett R, Iversen LL, Woodruff GN (1988) 7-Chlorokynurenic acid is a selective antagonist at the glycine modulatory site of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor complex. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 85: 6547–6550
Legendre P, Westbrook GL (1991) Ifenprodil blocks N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors by a two-component mechanism. Mol Pharmacol 40:289–298
Lehmann J, Scatton B (1982) Characterization of the excitatory amino acid receptor mediated release of [3H]acetylcholine from rat striatal slices. Brain Res 252:77–89
Maura G, Gernignani A, Raiteri M (1982) Noradrenaline inhibits central serotonin release through alpha2-adrenoceptors located on serotoninergic nerve terminals. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 320:272–274
Mayer ML, Westbrook GL, Guthrie PB (1984) Voltage-dependent block by Mg2+ of NMDA responses in spinal cord neurones. Nature 309:261–263
Motulsky HJ, Ransnas LA (1987) Fitting curves to data using nonlinear regression: a practical and nonmathematical review. FASEB 1:365–374
Murphy DE, Schneider J, Boehm C, Lehmann J, Williams M (1987) Binding of [3H]3-(2-Carboxypiperazin-4-yl)propyl-1-phosphonic acid to rat brain membranes: a selective, high-affinity ligand for N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 240:778–784
Nicolas C, Carter C (1994) Autoradiographic distribution and characteristics of high- and low-affinity polyamine-sensitive [3H]ifenprodil sites in the rat brain: possible relationship to NMDAR2B receptors and calmodulin. J Neurochem 63:2248–2258
Nicolas C, Fage D, Carter C (1994) NMDA receptors with different sensitivities for magnesium and ifenprodil control the release of [14C]acetylcholine and [3H]spermidine from rat striatal slices in vitro. J Neurochem 62:1835–1839
Nowak L, Bregestowski P, Ascher P, Herbet A, Prochiantz A (1984) Magnesium gates glutamate-activated channels in mouse central neurones. Nature 307:462–465
Olverman HJ, Monaghan DT, Cotman CW, Watkins JC (1986) [3H]CPP, a new competitive ligand for NMDA receptors. Eur J Pharmacol 131:161–162
Pittaluga A, Raiteri M (1990) Release-enhancing glycine-dependent NMDA receptors exist on noradrenergic terminals of hippocampus. Eur J Pharmacol 191:231–234
Priestley T, Ochu E, Kemp JA (1994) Subtypes of NMDA receptor in neurones cultured from rat brain. NeuroReport 5:1763–1765
Roberts PJ, Sharif NA (1978) Effects of L-glutamate and related amino acids upon the release of [3H]dopamine from rat striatal slices. Brain Res 157:391–395
Seeburg P (1993) The molecular biology of mammalian glutamate receptor channels. Trends Pharmacol Sci 14:297–303
Trendelenburg U, Trendelenburg M, Starke K, Limberger N (1994) Release-inhibiting alpha2-adrenoceptors at serotonergic axons in rat and rabbit brain cortex: evidence for pharmacological identity with alpha2-autoreceptors. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 349:25–33
Vaatstra WJ, Deiman-Van-Aalst WM, Eigeman L (1981) DU 24565, a quipazine derivative, a potent selective serotonin uptake inhibitor. Eur J Pharmacol 70:195–202
Vezzani A, Wu HQ, Samanin R (1987) [3H]Norepinephrine release from hippocampal slices is an in vitro biochemical tool for investigating the pharmacological properties of excitatory amino acid receptors. J Neurochem 49:1438–1442
Watkins JC, Krogsgaard-Larsen P, Honoré T (1990) Structure-activity relationships in the development of excitatory amino acid receptor agonists and competitive antagonists. Trends Pharmacol Sci 11:25–33
Williams K (1993) Ifenprodil discriminates subtypes of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor -Selectivity and mechanisms at recombinant heteromeric receptors. Mol Pharmacol 44:851–859
Williams K, Romano C, Dichter MA, Molinoff PB (1991) Minireview: Modulation of the NMDA receptor by polyamines. Life Sci 48:469–498
Williams K, Russel SL, Shen YM, Molinoff PB (1993) Developmental switch in the expression of NMDA receptors occurs in vivo and in vitro. Neuron 10:267–278
Wong EHF, Kemp JA, Priestley T, Knight AR, Woodruff GN, Iversen LL (1986) The anticonvulsant MK-801 is a potent N-methyl-D-aspartate antagonist. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 83:7104–7108
Zorumski CF, Thio LL (1992) Properties of vertebrate glutamate receptors: calcium mobilisation and desensitization. Progr Neurobiol 39:295–336
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Fink, K., Schmitz, V., Böing, C. et al. Stimulation of serotonin release in the rat brain cortex by activation of ionotropic glutamate receptors and its modulation via α2-heteroreceptors. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 352, 394–401 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00172776
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00172776