Neurosteroid modulation of GABAA receptors has been observed with all subunit combinations investigated; however, hetero-oligomeric GABAA receptors containing d subunits were not studied previously. We describe the effect of d subunit expression on 3a,21-dihydroxy-5a-pregnan-20-1 (THDOC)induced potentiation of GABA-gated currents in transfected HEK 293 cells and in cerebellar granule cells in v...

g-Aminobutyrate type C (GABAC) receptors are ligand-gated ion channels that are expressed preponderantly in the vertebrate retina and are characterized, among other things, by a very low rate of desensitization and resistance to the specific GABAA antagonist bicuculline. To examine which structural elements determine the nondesensitizing character of the human homomeric r1 receptor, we used a c...

The GABAA receptors are the major inhibitory receptors in the brain and are localized at both synaptic and extrasynaptic membranes. Synaptic GABAA receptors mediate phasic inhibition, whereas extrasynaptic GABAA receptors mediate tonic inhibition. Both phasic and tonic inhibitions regulate neuronal activity, but whether they regulate each other is not very clear. Here, we investigated the funct...

Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) and conventional antisera were raised to the affinity-purified GABAA receptor/benzodiazepine receptor/Cl- channel complex. The antibodies immunoprecipitated the affinity-purified complex in Triton X-100 and also reacted with the complex in a solid-phase radioimmunoassay. Immunoblots indicated that the mAb 62-3G1 reacted with the 57,000 Mr peptide subunit of the affi...

Cerebellar granule cells are particularly sensitive to inhibition by methylmercury (MeHg) on GABAA receptor function. This is manifested as a more rapid block of inhibitory postsynaptic currents/ inhibitory postsynaptic potentials than for Purkinje cells. The underlying mechanism(s) for differential sensitivity of GABAergic transmission to MeHg in cerebellar neurons is unknown. Differential exp...

General anesthesia is widely used in pediatric surgery, although the influence of general anesthesia on cerebellar information transmission and motor function is unclear. In the present study, neonatal mice received repeated inhalation of sevoflurane, and electrophysiological alterations in Purkinje cells (PCs) and the development of motor functions were detected. In addition, γ‑aminobutyric ac...

The mAb 62-3G1 to the GABAA receptor/benzodiazepine receptor/Cl- channel complex was used with light-microscopy immunocytochemistry for studying the localization of the GABAA receptors (GABAR) in the rat brain. The results have shown a receptor distribution identical to the one obtained by others using 3H-muscimol binding in combination with autoradiographic techniques. The external plexiform l...

The human CACNA1A gene encodes the pore-forming α1 subunit of CaV2.1 (P/Q-type) calcium channels and is the locus for several neurological disorders, including episodic ataxia type 2 (EA2), spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (SCA6) and Familial Hemiplegic Migraine type 1 (FHM1). Several spontaneous mouse Cacna1a mutant strains exist, among them Rolling Nagoya (tgrol), carrying the R1262G point mutat...

The major isoforms of the GABAA (gamma-aminobutyric acid type A) receptor are composed of two alpha, two beta and one gamma subunit. Thus alpha and beta subunits occur twice in the receptor pentamer. As it is well documented that different isoforms of alpha and beta subunits can co-exist in the same pentamer, the question is raised whether the relative position of a subunit isoform affects the ...