Background: The ventral tegmental area (VTA) is well known for its role in cardiovascular control. It is demonstrated that about 20-30% of the VTA neurons are GABAergic though their role in cardiovascular control is not yet understood. This study is carried out to find the effects of GABA A and GABA B receptors on cardiovascular response of the VTA. Methods: Experiments were performed on uretha...

Introduction: The Bed nucleus stria terminalis (BST) is a part of the limbic system. It was recently shown that chemical stimulation of the BST by L-glutamate elicited cardiovascular depressive responses. In the present study, we have investigated the possible cardiovascular role of the GABAergic receptors in BST by microinjection of its agonist and antagonists. Methods: Experiments were p...

Gustav Akk has a background in biophysics and pharmacology of ion channels. His current work focuses on the mechanisms of activation and modulation of transmitter-gated ion channels, particularly the GABAA receptor, under physiological and clinical conditions. The GABAA receptor is the major ionotropic inhibitory ion channel in the brain and an important component in the maintenance of excitato...

background: the ventral tegmental area (vta) is well known for its role in cardiovascular control. it is demonstrated that about 20-30% of the vta neurons are gabaergic though their role in cardiovascular control is not yet understood. this study is carried out to find the effects of gaba a and gaba b receptors on cardiovascular response of the vta. methods: experiments were performed on uretha...

In this review, we present evidence for the role of g-aminobutyric acid (GABA) neurotransmission in cerebral ischemia-induced neuronal death. While glutamate neurotransmission has received widespread attention in this area of study, relatively few investigators have focused on the ischemia-induced alterations in inhibitory neurotransmission. We present a review of the effects of cerebral ischem...

GABA is the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter in the mammalian CNS. It acts via two classes of receptors, the GABAA, a ligand gated ion channel (ionotropic receptor) and the metabotropic G-protein coupled GABAB receptor. While synaptic GABAA receptors underlie classical ‘phasic’ GABAA receptor-mediated inhibition, extrasynaptic GABAA receptors (eGABAAR) mediate a new form of inhibition, ter...

BACKGROUND Stem cell therapy using adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADSCs), which are capable of multipotent differentiation, is currently being investigated in the field of tissue regeneration and the treatment of patients in intensive care units. It is known that type-A γ-aminobutyric acid (GABAA) receptor activity has an influence on stem cell proliferation. Thus, we investigat...

Intracellular recordings were made from presumed dopamine-containing neurons in slices cut from the midbrain of the rat. Focal electrical stimulation produced a hyperpolarizing synaptic potential that was reduced by 75-95% by the GABAB-receptor antagonist 2-hydroxysaclofen (300 microM). 5-HT (3-100 microM) reduced the amplitude of the GABAB synaptic potential by 20-74%, with a 50% reduction at ...