Synaptic vesicles burst into sight

Characterization of glutamate uptake into synaptic vesicles.

Recent evidence indicates that L-glutamate is taken up into synaptic vesicles in an ATP-dependent manner, supporting the notion that synaptic vesicles may be involved in glutamate synaptic transmission. In this study, we further characterized the ATP-dependent vesicular uptake of glutamate. Evidence is provided that a Mg-ATPase, not Ca-ATPase, is responsible for the ATP hydrolysis coupled to th...

Synaptic vesicles: turning reluctance into action.

Vesicle availability partly determines the efficacy of synaptic communication in the CNS. The authors recently found that some hippocampal glutamate vesicles exhibit reluctance to exocytose during short, high-frequency action potential trains. These same vesicles can be "coaxed" into exocytosis by increased Ca(2+)entry, by direct depolarization of synaptic terminals, or by challenge with hypert...

Synaptic vesicles

Aside from forming ion channels, what else do claudins do? Claudins and occludin (also a four-pass integral membrane protein) interact laterally in the membrane circumscribing the cell to form a ‘fence’. This barrier prevents the diffusion of extracellularly facing lipids between apical and basolateral plasma membrane domains. The tight junction may also be an important component of several sig...

Glutamate uptake into synaptic vesicles: competitive inhibition by bromocriptine.

The ATP-dependent uptake of L-glutamate into synaptic vesicles has been well characterized, implicating a key role for synaptic vesicles in glutamatergic neurotransmission. In the present study, we provide evidence that vesicular glutamate uptake is selectively inhibited by the peptide-containing halogenated ergot bromocriptine. It is the most potent inhibitor of the agents tested: the IC50 was...

Inhibition of norepinephrine uptake into synaptic vesicles by butylated hydroxytoluene.