GABA A receptors form ClϪ permeable channels that mediate the majority of fast synaptic inhibition in the brain. The K ϩ /Cl Ϫ cotransporter KCC2 is the main mechanism by which neurons establish low intracellular Cl Ϫ levels, which is thought to enable GABAergic inhibitory control of neuronal activity. However, the widely used KCC2 inhibitor furosemide is nonselective with antiseizure efficacy in slices and in vivo, leading to a conflicting scheme of how KCC2 influences GABAergic control of neuronal synchronization. Here we used the selective KCC2 inhibitor VU0463271 [N-cyclopropyl-N-(4-methyl-2-thiazolyl)-2-[(6-phenyl-3-pyridazinyl)thio]acetamide] to investigate the influence of KCC2 function. Application of VU0463271 caused a reversible depolarizing shift in E GABA values and increased spiking of cultured hippocampal neurons. Application of VU0463271 to mouse hippocampal slices under low-Mg 2ϩ conditions induced unremitting recurrent epileptiform discharges. Finally, microinfusion of VU0463271 alone directly into the mouse dorsal hippocampus rapidly caused epileptiform discharges. Our findings indicated that KCC2 function was a critical inhibitory factor ex vivo and in vivo.
The accumulation of ␥-aminobutyric acid receptors (GABA A Rs) at the appropriate postsynaptic sites is critical for determining the efficacy of fast inhibitory neurotransmission. Although we know that the majority of synaptic GABA A R subtypes are assembled from ␣1-3, , and ␥2 subunits, our understanding of how neurons facilitate their targeting to and stabilization at inhibitory synapses is rudimentary. To address these issues, we have created knock-in mice in which the pH-sensitive green fluorescent protein (GFP) and the Myc epitope were introduced to the extracellular domain of the mature receptor ␣2 subunit (pH␣2). Using immunoaffinity purification and mass spectroscopy, we identified a stable complex of 174 proteins that were associated with pH␣2, including other GABA A R subunits, and previously identified receptor-associated proteins such as gephyrin and collybistin. 149 of these proteins were novel GABA A R binding partners and included G-protein-coupled receptors and ion channel subunits, proteins that regulate trafficking and degradation, regulators of protein phosphorylation, GTPases, and a number of proteins that regulate their activity. Notably, members of the postsynaptic density family of proteins that are critical components of excitatory synapses were not associated with GABA A Rs. Crucially, we demonstrated for a subset of these novel proteins (including cullin1, ephexin, potassium channel tetramerization domain containing protein 12, mitofusin2, metabotropic glutamate receptor 5, p21-activated kinase 7, and Ras-related protein 5A) bind directly to the intracellular domains of GABA A Rs, validating our proteomic analysis. Thus, our experiments illustrate the complexity of the GABA A R proteome and enhance our understanding of the mechanisms neurons use to construct inhibitory synapses.
Background The GABAergic neuroactive steroid (3α,5α)-3-hydroxy-pregnan-20-one (3α,5α-THP, allopregnanolone) has been studied during withdrawal from ethanol in humans, rats and mice. Serum 3α,5α-THP levels decreased and brain levels were not altered following acute ethanol administration (2 g/kg) in male C57BL/6J mice, however the effects of chronic intermittent ethanol (CIE) exposure on 3α,5α-THP levels have not been examined. Given that CIE exposure changes subsequent voluntary ethanol drinking in a time-dependent fashion following repeated cycles of ethanol exposure, we conducted a time-course analysis of CIE effects on 3α,5α-THP levels in specific brain regions known to influence drinking behavior. Methods Adult male C57BL/6J mice were exposed to four cycles of CIE to induce ethanol dependence. All mice were sacrificed and perfused at one of two time points, 8 hr or 72 hr following the final exposure cycle. Free floating brain sections (40 μm; 3-5 sections/region/animal) were immunostained and analyzed to determine relative levels of cellular 3α,5α-THP. Results Withdrawal from CIE exposure produced time-dependent and region-specific effects on immunohistochemical detection of 3α,5α-THP levels across cortical and limbic brain regions. A transient reduction in 3α,5α-THP immunoreactivity was observed in the central nucleus of the amygdala 8 hr after withdrawal from CIE (-31.4 ± 9.3). Decreases in 3α,5α-THP immunoreactivity were observed 72 hr following withdrawal in the medial prefrontal cortex (−25.0 ± 9.3%), nucleus accumbens core (−29.9 ± 6.6%), and dorsolateral striatum (−18.5 ± 6.0%), while an increase was observed in the CA3 pyramidal cell layer of the hippocampus (+42.8 ± 19.5%). Sustained reductions in 3α,5α-THP immunoreactivity were observed at both time points in the lateral amygdala (8 hr −28.3 ± 12.8%; 72 hr −27.5 ± 12.4%) and in the ventral tegmental area (8 hr −26.5 ± 9.9%; 72 hr −31.6 ± 13.8%). Conclusions These data suggest that specific neuroadaptations in 3α,5α-THP levels may be present in regions of brain that mediate anxiety, stress and reinforcement relevant to ethanol dependence. The changes that occur at different time points likely modulate neurocircuitry involved in ethanol withdrawal as well as the elevated drinking observed after CIE exposure.
The neuronal K+-Cl− co-transporter KCC2 (also known as solute carrier family 12 member 5, or SLC12A5) critically maintains the neuronal Cl− gradient to establish hyperpolarizing signaling by GABA A receptors, the primary mediators of fast synaptic inhibition in the brain. These receptors are also the principal targets of benzo-diazepines, neurosteroids, and intravenous general anesthetics 1 . The downregulation of KCC2 in neuropathic pain models
The neuroactive steroid (3a,5a)-3-hydroxypregnan-20-one (3a,5a-THP or allopregnanolone) is a positive modulator of GABA A receptors synthesized in the brain, adrenal glands, and gonads. In rats, ethanol activates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and elevates 3a,5a-THP in plasma, cerebral cortex, and hippocampus. In vivo, these effects are dependent on both the pituitary and adrenal glands. In vitro, however, ethanol locally increases 3a,5a-THP in hippocampal slices, in the absence of adrenal influence. Therefore, it is not known whether ethanol can change local brain levels of 3a,5a-THP in vivo, independent of the adrenals. To directly address this controversy, we administered ethanol (2 g/kg) or saline to rats that underwent adrenalectomy (ADX) or received sham surgery and performed immunohistochemistry for 3a,5a-THP. In the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), ethanol increased 3a,5a-THP after sham surgery, compared with saline controls, with no ethanol-induced change in 3a,5a-THP following ADX. In subcortical regions, 3a,5a-THP was increased independent of adrenals in the CA1 pyramidal cell layer, dentate gyrus polymorphic layer, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, and paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. Furthermore, ethanol decreased 3a,5a-THP labeling in the nucleus accumbens shore and central nucleus of the amygdala, independent of the adrenal glands. These data indicate that ethanol dynamically regulates local 3a,5a-THP levels in several subcortical regions; however, the adrenal glands contribute to 3a,5a-THP elevations in the mPFC. Using double immunofluorescent labeling we determined that adrenal dependence of 3a,5a-THP induction by ethanol is not due to a lack of colocalization of 3a,5a-THP with the cholesterol transporters steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR) or translocator protein (TSPO).
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