N-Methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor (NMDAR) hypofunction has been postulated to contribute to the cognitive deficit of schizophrenia. In this study, we examined the effect of lurasidone (Latuda; Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma Co. Ltd., Tokyo, Japan), a newly approved atypical antipsychotic drug (APD), on NMDAR synaptic function in rat frontal cortical pyramidal neurons. In vivo administration of lu...

PSD-95 is a major protein found in virtually all mature excitatory glutamatergic synapses in the brain. Here, we have addressed the role of PSD-95 in controlling glutamatergic synapse function by generating and characterizing a PSD-95 KO mouse. We found that the alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid (AMPA)subtype of glutamate receptor (AMPAR)-mediated synaptic transmission wa...

N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDAR) have a recognized role in neuronal plasticity while their excessive activation results in excitotoxic death. Therefore, NMDAR antagonists are considered for neuroprotective interventions. However, there is also an emerging role of NMDAR in supporting neuronal survival. Thus, during CNS development, basal NMDAR activity suppresses neuronal apoptosis while m...

Objective The dorsal horn P2Y13 receptor is involved in the development of pain behavior induced by peripheral nerve injury. It is unclear whether the expression of proinflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6 at the spinal dorsal horn are influenced after the activation of P2Y13 receptor in rats with diabetic neuropathic pain (DNP). Methods A rat model of type 1 DNP was induced by ...

The tumor suppressor PTEN (phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10) is a lipid and protein phosphatase. We report here that PTEN physically associates with the NR1 and NR2B subunits of NMDA receptors (NMDARs) in rat hippocampus. Downregulating the protein expression of PTEN inhibits the function of extrasynaptic NMDARs and decreases NMDAR surface expression, suggesting a crucial...

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS Facial motor neurons (FMNs) are involved in the remodeling of the facial nucleus in response to peripheral injury. This study aimed to examine the gene expression of alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid receptor (AMPAR) and N-methyl-D-aspartate subtype of ionotropic glutamate receptor (NMDAR) in reinnervating dormant FMNs after facial nerve axotomy. S...

NR1/NR2A is a subtype of N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors (NMDARs), which are glutamate and glycine-gated Ca(2+)-permeable channels highly expressed in the central nervous system. A high-throughput screening (HTS) campaign using human osteosarcoma (U-2 OS) cells transiently transduced with NR1/NR2A NMDAR subunits, tested in a specifically designed fluorometric imaging plate reader (FLIPR)/Ca(2+) ...

We generated expression vectors for N-terminally green fluorescent protein -tagged NR2A and NR2B subunits (GFP-NR2A and GFP-NR2B). Both constructs expressed GFP and formed functional NMDA channels with similar properties to untagged controls when co-transfected with NR1 subunit partner in HEK293 cells. Primary cultured hippocampal neurons were transfected at five days in vitro with these vector...

The hippocampal N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) activity plays important roles in cognition and is a major substrate for ethanol-induced memory dysfunction. This receptor is a glutamate-gated ion channel, which is composed of NR1 and NR2 subunits in various brain areas. Although homomeric NR1 subunits form an active ion channel that conducts Na⁺ and Ca²⁺ currents, the incorporation of NR2...

N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) are comprised of different subunits. NR2 subunits confer different pharmacological and biophysical properties to NMDARs. Although NR2B subunit expression is uniform throughout striatum, NR2A subunit expression is greater laterally. Pharmacologically isolated NMDAR-mediated excitatory postsynaptic currents (NMDAR-EPSCs) were elicited using minimal local st...