Synaptic transmission from vertebrate photoreceptors involves activation of L-type calcium currents (ICa). Dopamine is an important circadian neuromodulator in the retina and photoreceptors possess D2 dopamine receptors. We examined modulation of ICa by dopamine and cAMP in retinal slices and isolated cells of larval tiger salamander. Results show that dopamine and a D2 agonist, quinpirole, enhanced ICa in rods and red-, blue- and UV-sensitive small single cones but inhibited ICa in red-sensitive large single cones. A D1 agonist, SKF-38393, was without effect. Quinpirole effects were blocked by pertussis toxin (PTx) pretreatment indicating involvement of PTx-sensitive G-proteins. Like dopamine, inhibition of cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) by Rp-cAMPS enhanced ICa in rods and small single cones, but inhibited ICa in large single cones. In contrast, forskolin and Sp-cAMPS, which stimulate PKA, inhibited ICa in rods and small single cones but enhanced ICa in large single cones. Sp-cAMPS also occluded effects of quinpirole. These results suggest that D2 receptors modulate ICa via inhibition of cAMP. Differences among the responses of photoreceptors to cAMP are consistent with the possibility that small single cones and rods may possess different Ca2+ channel subtypes than large single cones. The results with dopamine and quinpirole showing inhibition of ICa in large single cones and enhancement of rod ICa were unexpected because previous studies have shown that dopamine suppresses rod inputs and enhances cone inputs into second-order neurons. The present results therefore indicate that the dopaminergic enhancement of cone inputs does not arise from modulation of photoreceptor ICa.

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Presynaptic inhibition is a major mechanism for regulating synaptic transmission in the CNS and adenosine inhibits Ca(2+) currents (I(Ca)) to reduce transmitter release at several synapses. Rod photoreceptors possess L-type Ca(2+) channels that regulate the release of L-glutamate. In the retina, adenosine is released in the dark when L-glutamate release is maximal. We tested whether adenosine inhibits I(Ca) and intracellular Ca(2+) increases in rod photoreceptors in retinal slice and isolated cell preparations. Adenosine inhibited both I(Ca) and the [Ca(2+)]i increase evoked by depolarization in a dose-dependent manner with approximately 25% inhibition at 50 microM. An A2-selective agonist, (N(6)-[2-(3,5-dimethoxyphenyl)-2-(2-methylphenyl)-ethyl]adenosine) (DPMA), but not the A1- or A3-selective agonists, (R)-N(6)-(1-methyl-2-phenylethyl)adenosine and N(6)-2-(4-aminophenyl)ethyladenosine, also inhibited I(Ca) and depolarization-induced [Ca(2+)]i increases. An inhibitor of protein kinase A (PKA), Rp-cAMPS, blocked the effects of DPMA on both I(Ca) and the depolarization-evoked [Ca(2+)]i increase in rods. The results suggest that activation of A2 receptors stimulates PKA to inhibit L-type Ca(2+) channels in rods resulting in a decreased Ca(2+) influx that should suppress glutamate release.

γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is likely expressed in horizontal cells of all species, although conflicting physiological findings have led to considerable controversy regarding its role as a transmitter in the outer retina. This study has evaluated key components of the GABA system in the outer retina of guinea pig, an emerging retinal model system. The presence of GABA, its rate-limiting synthetic enzyme glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD65 and GAD67 isoforms), the plasma membrane GABA transporters (GAT-1 and GAT-3), and the vesicular GABA transporter (VGAT) was evaluated by using immunohistochemistry with well-characterized antibodies. The presence of GAD65 mRNA was also evaluated by using laser capture microdissection and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. Specific GABA, GAD65, and VGAT immunostaining was localized to horizontal cell bodies, as well as to their processes and tips in the outer plexiform layer. Furthermore, immunostaining of retinal whole mounts and acutely dissociated retinas showed GAD65 and VGAT immunoreactivity in both A-type and B-type horizontal cells. However, these cells did not contain GAD67, GAT-1, or GAT-3 immunoreactivity. GAD65 mRNA was detected in horizontal cells, and sequencing of the amplified GAD65 fragment showed approximately 85% identity with other mammalian GAD65 mRNAs. These studies demonstrate the presence of GABA, GAD65, and VGAT in horizontal cells of the guinea pig retina, and support the idea that GABA is synthesized from GAD65, taken up into synaptic vesicles by VGAT, and likely released by a vesicular mechanism from horizontal cells.

Vesicle release from photoreceptor ribbon synapses is regulated by L-type Ca(2+) channels, which are in turn regulated by Cl(-) moving through calcium-activated chloride [Cl(Ca)] channels. We assessed the proximity of Ca(2+) channels to release sites and Cl(Ca) channels in synaptic terminals of salamander photoreceptors by comparing fast (BAPTA) and slow (EGTA) intracellular Ca(2+) buffers. BAPTA did not fully block synaptic release, indicating some release sites are <100 nm from Ca(2+) channels. Comparing Cl(Ca) currents with predicted Ca(2+) diffusion profiles suggested that Cl(Ca) and Ca(2+) channels average a few hundred nanometers apart, but the inability of BAPTA to block Cl(Ca) currents completely suggested some channels are much closer together. Diffuse immunolabeling of terminals with an antibody to the putative Cl(Ca) channel TMEM16A supports the idea that Cl(Ca) channels are dispersed throughout the presynaptic terminal, in contrast with clustering of Ca(2+) channels near ribbons. Cl(Ca) currents evoked by intracellular calcium ion concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)) elevation through flash photolysis of DM-nitrophen exhibited EC(50) values of 556 and 377 nM with Hill slopes of 1.8 and 2.4 in rods and cones, respectively. These relationships were used to estimate average submembrane [Ca(2+)](i) in photoreceptor terminals. Consistent with control of exocytosis by [Ca(2+)] nanodomains near Ca(2+) channels, average submembrane [Ca(2+)](i) remained below the vesicle release threshold (∼ 400 nM) over much of the physiological voltage range for cones. Positioning Ca(2+) channels near release sites may improve fidelity in converting voltage changes to synaptic release. A diffuse distribution of Cl(Ca) channels may allow Ca(2+) influx at one site to influence relatively distant Ca(2+) channels.

Activation of D 2 -like dopamine receptors in rods with quinpirole stimulates L-type calcium currents (I Ca

Plasmalemmal and vesicular γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) transporters influence neurotransmission by regulating high-affinity GABA uptake and GABA release into the synaptic cleft and extracellular space. Postnatal expression of the plasmalemmal GABA transporter-1 (GAT-1), GAT-3, and the vesicular GABA/glycine transporter (VGAT) were evaluated in the developing mouse retina by using immunohistochemistry with affinity-purified antibodies. Weak transporter immunoreactivity was observed in the inner retina at postnatal day 0 (P0). GAT-1 immunostaining at P0 and at older ages was in amacrine and displaced amacrine cells in the inner nuclear layer (INL) and ganglion cell layer (GCL), respectively, and in their processes in the inner plexiform layer (IPL). At P10, weak GAT-1 immunostaining was in Müller cell processes. GAT-3 immunostaining at P0 and older ages was in amacrine cells and their processes, as well as in Müller cells and their processes that extended radially across the retina. At P10, Müller cell somata were observed in the middle of the INL. VGAT immunostaining was present at P0 and older ages in amacrine cells in the INL as well as processes in the IPL. At P5, weak VGAT immunostaining was also observed in horizontal cell somata and processes. By P15, the GAT and VGAT immunostaining patterns appear similar to the adult immunostaining patterns; they reached adult levels by about P20. These findings demonstrate that GABA uptake and release are initially established in the inner retina during the first postnatal week and that these systems subsequently mature in the outer retina during the second postnatal week. KeywordsGAT; VGAT; amacrine cells; horizontal cells; retina; visual system Plasmalemmal and vesicular γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) transporters have essential roles in GABA neurotransmission. The GABA plasma membrane transporters (GATs), which mediate high-affinity GABA uptake from the synaptic cleft and extracellular space, terminate GABA's *Correspondence to: Nicholas C. Brecha, PhD, Department of Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, University of California at Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90095-1763. E-mail: nbrecha@ucla.edu. NIH Public Access NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript synaptic action (for reviews see Chen et al., 2004;Conti et al., 2004;Kanner, 2006). In addition, GATs have been proposed to mediate GABA release into the extracellular space in both normal and pathological conditions (Schwartz, 1987(Schwartz, , 2002O'Malley et al., 1992;Attwell et al., 1993;Dalby, 2003;Richerson and Wu, 2003;Wu et al., 2007). The vesicular GABA transporter (VGAT or VIAAT) mediates GABA uptake and storage in synaptic vesicles (for review see Gasnier, 2004) before GABA is released from synaptic vesicles by a Ca 2+ -dependent mechanism following depolarization of the nerve terminal (Liu and Edwards, 1997;Südhof, 2004).Four distinct molecular and pharmacological types of GATs, GAT-1, GAT-2, GAT-3, and betaine/GABA transporter (BG...

Protein-tyrosine phosphatase receptor type G (RPTP␥/ PTPRG) interacts in vitro with contactin-3-6 (CNTN3-6), a group of glycophosphatidylinositol-anchored cell adhesion molecules involved in the wiring of the nervous system. In addition to PTPRG, CNTNs associate with multiple transmembrane proteins and signal inside the cell via cis-binding partners to alleviate the absence of an intracellular region. Here, we use comprehensive biochemical and structural analyses to demonstrate that PTPRG⅐CNTN3-6 complexes share similar binding affinities and a conserved arrangement. Furthermore, as a first step to identifying PTPRG⅐CNTN complexes in vivo, we found that PTPRG and CNTN3 associate in the outer segments of mouse rod photoreceptor cells. In particular, PTPRG and CNTN3 form cis-complexes at the surface of photoreceptors yet interact in trans when expressed on the surfaces of apposing cells. Further structural analyses suggest that all CNTN ectodomains adopt a bent conformation and might lie parallel to the cell surface to accommodate these cis and trans binding modes. Taken together, these studies identify a PTPRG⅐CNTN complex in vivo and provide novel insights into PTPRG-and CNTN-mediated signaling.The complex processes that shape the nervous system include the proliferation, differentiation, and migration of neural cells, axon guidance, and the formation of synapses. At the molecular level, these intricate processes rely on interactions between cell surface receptors coupled to intracellular downstream signaling networks. Such receptors might include cadherins, Ig superfamily proteins, neurexins, neuroligins, and leucine-rich repeat proteins as well as receptor tyrosine kinases and receptor protein-tyrosine phosphatases (RPTPs) 4 (1, 2). Members of the RPTP family typically combine large extracellular segments and intracellular phosphatase domains, which makes them ideally suited to coordinate cell adhesion and cell signaling. Among these, the homologous protein-tyrosine phosphatase receptor type G (PTPRG) and protein-tyrosine phosphatase receptor type Z (PTPRZ) were among the first RPTPs identified in the nervous system, and their ectodomains are characterized by the presence of an inactive N-terminal carbonic anhydrase-like (CA) domain that mediates proteinprotein interactions (Fig. 1A) (3, 4). PTPRZ and its binding partner, the neural cell adhesion molecule contactin-1 (CNTN1), control the proliferation of oligodendrocyte precursor cells and their maturation into myelinating oligodendrocytes (5). Less is known, however, about PTPRG, its in vivo ligands, and the physiological roles these complexes might play.Unlike PTPRZ, PTPRG is mostly expressed on neurons, although it has recently been found in some astrocytes and microglia in adult mouse brains (4, 6). PTPRG interacts in vitro via its CA domain with four homologs of CNTN1 called CNTN3-6 (7). All CNTNs are linked to the membrane by a glycophosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor, suggesting that they require a co-receptor to signal across the membrane (8, 9). CNTNs a...