Congeners of nitrogen monoxide (NO) are neuroprotective and neurodestructive. To address this apparent paradox, we considered the effects on neurons of compounds characterized by alternative redox states of NO: nitric oxide (NO.) and nitrosonium ion (NO+). Nitric oxide, generated from NO. donors or synthesized endogenously after NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptor activation, can lead to neurotoxicity. Here, we report that NO.- mediated neurotoxicity is engendered, at least in part, by reaction with superoxide anion (O2.-), apparently leading to formation of peroxynitrite (ONOO-), and not by NO. alone. In contrast, the neuroprotective effects of NO result from downregulation of NMDA-receptor activity by reaction with thiol group(s) of the receptor's redox modulatory site. This reaction is not mediated by NO. itself, but occurs under conditions supporting S-nitrosylation of NMDA receptor thiol (reaction or transfer of NO+). Moreover, the redox versatility of NO allows for its interconversion from neuroprotective to neurotoxic species by a change in the ambient redox milieu. The details of this complex redox chemistry of NO may provide a mechanism for harnessing neuroprotective effects and avoiding neurotoxicity in the central nervous system.

metals in all biological systems (Stamler, 1994). The S-nitrosothiol (SNO) and metal nitrosyl (MNO) products and Nikolaus J. Sucher ‡ § have intrinsic reactivities that enable local action. The * Departments of Medicine, Cell Biology, NO group is transferred by covalent exchange mecha- † Chemistry and Biochemistry nisms including thiol/nitrosothiol (RSNO/R'S Ϫ ⇔ R'SNO/ Duke University RS Ϫ ) or nitrosothiol/metal (SNO/M ⇔ MNO/S) exchange. Durham, North CarolinaThis mode of intra-and intercellular communication has ‡ Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience advantages over free diffusion and is better established Children's Hospital in vivo (Stamler et al., 1992a;Jia et al., 1996). Harvard Medical SchoolNO also exploits reactions with O 2 /O 2 Ϫ to complete the Boston, Massachusetts armamentarium of species responsible for "NO" effects (Table 1; Stamler et al., 1992b). This is well exemplified Nitric oxide (NO) is a signaling molecule that has capin the immune system in work by DeGroote and Fang tured our imagination. According to the common view, (DeGroote et al., 1996). These researchers found that NO diffuses over a large sphere of influence, moving bacterial virulence is conferred by a gene that protects freely through membranes of target cells to raise levels against the lethal effects of SNOs produced by the (muof cGMP. In the brain, NO influences synaptic plasticity, rine) host, whereas NO is harmless against the same apoptosis, neuronal development, and even complex bacteria. Molecular recognition of the SNO onslaught behavioral responses. This image has been reinforced and the activation of bacterial resistance is achieved by by observations in the cardiovascular and immune sys-S-nitrosylation of proteins involved in defense (Hauslatems, for example, the relaxation of blood vessels by den et al., 1996). Thus, in this system, S-nitrosylation is cGMP, and the killing of tumor cells and bacteria by the the signal and the regulator of the response. macrophage NO synthase (NOS).A similar NO signal is used by mammalian cells. Images can also be misleading. First, a wide sphere For example, the endothelium-derived relaxation factor of NO diffusion implies that it travels down concentration (EDRF)/NO-mediated relaxation of blood vessels occurs gradients that are established by extracellular sinks partly by direct activation of a potassium channel (Lancaster, 1994;Stamler, 1996). The problem with this through reactions of EDRF with critical thiols (Bolotina picture is that NO cannot achieve local action: it would et al., 1994). Likewise in the heart, SNO and peroxynitrite be leaving cells more rapidly than it reacts within. Sec-(OONO Ϫ ) directly activate calcium channels by a redox ond, we have come to appreciate that many NO signals mechanism that opposes the effects of cGMP (Campbell are cGMP independent. These pathways, typically et al., 1996). Ion channel activation may also account grouped under the broad heading of "redox", have not for NO/SNO-mediated relaxations of third to fourth order been i...

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A novel NMDA receptor-like (NMDAR-L) cDNA was isolated that contained an open reading frame coding for a predicted polypeptide of 1115 amino acids that shares approximately 27% identity with NMDA receptor subunits. In situ hybridization experiments indicated that NMDAR-L mRNA was expressed in the developing rodent CNS. On postnatal day 1 (P1), NMDAR-L mRNA expression was pronounced in the entorhinal cortex, the subiculum and the thalamus, in layer V of the developing neocortex, in the superior and inferior colliculi, and various regions of the hindbrain, excluding the cerebellum. On P5, NMDAR-L mRNA was expressed in layer V of the neocortex, in the entorhinal cortex, in the subiculum, and in the thalamus. On P14, NMDAR-L mRNA was expressed in layers II-VI of the neocortex, in the entorhinal and piriform cortex, in the subiculum and CA1 field, and in the nucleus of the lateral olfactory tract. In the adult brain, NMDAR-L mRNA was detected predominately in the nucleus of the lateral olfactory tract. Injection of NMDAR-L cRNA into Xenopus oocytes did not lead to the expression of homomeric glutamate-activated channels. However, coinjection of the triple combination of NMDAR-L with NMDAR1 and NMDAR2B cRNAs led to a striking decrease in the current magnitude compared to currents obtained after coexpression of the double combination of NMDAR1 with NMDAR2B. While the function of NMDAR-L remains to be established, its developmental and regional expression pattern suggests that NMDAR-L may influence axonal outgrowth and synaptogenesis during brain development.

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Loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) is a hallmark of many ophthalmic diseases including glaucoma, retinal ischemia due to central artery occlusion, anterior ischemic optic neuropathy and may be significant in optic neuritis, optic nerve trauma, and AIDS. Recent research indicates that neurotoxicity is caused by excessive stimulation of receptors for excitatory amino acids (EAAs). In particular, the amino acid glutamate has been shown to act as a neurotoxin which exerts its toxic effect on RGCs predominantly through the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) subtype of glutamate receptor. NMDA-receptor-mediated toxicity in RGCs is dependent on the influx of extracellular Ca2+. The increase in [Ca2+]i acts as a second messenger that sets in motion the cascade leading to eventual cell death. Glutamate stimulates its own release in a positive feedback loop by its interaction with the non-NMDA receptor subtypes. Ca(2+)-induced Ca2+ release and further influx of Ca2+ through voltage-gated Ca2+ channels after glutamate-induced depolarization contribute to glutamate toxicity. In vitro and in vivo studies suggest that the use of selective NMDA receptor antagonists or Ca2+ channel blockers should be useful in preventing or at least abating neuronal loss in the retina. Of particular importance for future clinical use of NMDA receptor antagonists in the treatment of acute vascular insults is the finding that some drugs can prevent glutamate-induced neurotoxicity, even when administered a few hours after the onset of retinal ischemia.

The highest incidence of seizures during lifetime is found in the neonatal period and neonatal seizures lead to a propensity for epilepsy and long-term cognitive deficits. Here, we identify potential mechanisms that elucidate a critical role for AMPA receptors (AMPARs) in epileptogenesis during this critical period in the developing brain. In a rodent model of neonatal seizures, we have shown previously that administration of antagonists of the AMPARs during the 48 h after seizures prevents long-term increases in seizure susceptibility and seizure-induced neuronal injury. Hypoxia-induced seizures in postnatal day 10 rats induce rapid and reversible alterations in AMPAR signaling resembling changes implicated previously in models of synaptic potentiation in vitro. Hippocampal slices removed after hypoxic seizures exhibited potentiation of AMPAR-mediated synaptic currents, including an increase in the amplitude and frequency of spontaneous and miniature EPSCs as well as increased synaptic potency. This increased excitability was temporally associated with a rapid increase in phosphorylation at GluR1 S845/S831 and GluR2 S880 sites and increased activity of the protein kinases CaMKII (calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II), PKA, and PKC, which mediate the phosphorylation of these AMPAR subunits. Postseizure administration of AMPAR antagonists NBQX (2,3-dihydroxy-6-nitro-7-sulfonyl-benzo[f]quinoxaline), topiramate, or GYKI-53773 [(1)-1-(4-aminophenyl)-3-acetyl-4-methyl-7,8-methylenedioxy-3,4-dihydro-5H-2,3-benzodiazepine] attenuated the AMPAR potentiation, phosphorylation, and kinase activation and prevented the concurrent increase in in vivo seizure susceptibility. Thus, the potentiation of AMPAR-containing synapses is a reversible, early step in epileptogenesis that offers a novel therapeutic target in the highly seizure-prone developing brain.

Functional NMDA receptors are heteromultimeric complexes of the NR1 subunit in combination with at least one of the four NR2 subunits (A-D). Coexpression of NR3A, an additional subunit of the NMDA receptor family, modifies NMDA-mediated responses. It is unclear whether NR3A interacts directly with NR1 and/or NR2 subunits and how such association might regulate the intracellular trafficking and membrane expression of NR3A. Here we show that NR3A coassembles with NR1-1a and NR2A to form a receptor complex with distinct singlechannel properties and a reduced relative calcium permeability. NR3A associates independently with both NR1-1a and NR2A in the endoplasmic reticulum, but only heteromeric complexes containing the NR1-1a NMDA receptor subunit are targeted to the plasma membrane. Homomeric NR3A complexes or complexes composed of NR2A and NR3A were not detected on the cell surface and are retained in the endoplasmic reticulum. Coexpression of NR1-1a facilitates the surface expression of NR3A-containing receptors, reduces the accumulation of NR3A subunits in the endoplasmic reticulum, and induces the appearance of intracellular clusters where both subunits are colocalized. Our data demonstrate a role for subunit oligomerization and specifically assembly with the NR1 subunit in the trafficking and plasma membrane targeting of the receptor complex.