Correspondence: Maryam Majdi or H-S vincent Chen Burnham institute for Medical Research, 10901 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037, USA Tel +1 858 646-3183 Fax +1 858 795-5273 email [email protected] or [email protected] Abstract: The N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) subtype of glutamate receptor (NMDAR) is essential for normal function of the central nervous system (CNS). Classi...

Correspondence: Diane B Re Columbia University, 630 west 168th Street, P&S 4-401, New York, 10032, NY, USA Tel +1 212-305-8689 Fax +1 212-305-5450 email [email protected] Abstract: The cause of the fatal motor neuron disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), remains largely unknown. Most cases of ALS are sporadic and, for ∼20% of familial ALS patients, mutations in the superoxide dismutas...

The non-specific endonuclease inhibitor, aurintricarboxylic acid (ATA), attenuated glutamate-induced destruction of cultured cortical neurons. In part, this protective effect likely reflected the ability of ATA to produce a slowly developing block of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor-mediated inward whole cell current or increase in intracellular free Ca2+. However, ATA also attenuated a high K(+)-...

Previous work from this laboratory indicates that the KDI (Lys-Asp-Ile) domain of gamma 1-laminin promotes functional regeneration of adult rat spinal cord injuries and protects adult rat hippocampal neurons against massive neuronal death induced by intracerebral injection of the glutamate analogue kainic acid. In the present study, we used patch clamp recordings on cultured human embryonic neo...

Huntington disease (HD) is characterized by the preferential loss of striatal medium-sized spiny neurons (MSNs) in the brain. Because MSNs receive abundant glutamatergic input, their vulnerability to excitotoxicity may be largely influenced by the capacity of glial cells to remove extracellular glutamate. However, little is known about the role of glia in HD neuropathology. Here, we report that...

The multifunctional properties of astrocytes signify their importance in brain physiology and neurological function. In addition to defining the brain architecture, astrocytes are primary elements of brain ion, pH and neurotransmitter homoeostasis. GS (glutamine synthetase), which catalyses the ATP-dependent condensation of ammonia and glutamate to form glutamine, is an enzyme particularly foun...

Extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK1/ERK2) have been shown transiently activated and involved in excitotoxicity. We searched for upstream molecules responsible for the regulation of glutamate-induced ERK1/ERK2 activation and ERK1/ERK2-mediated apototic-like death in cultured rat cortical neurons. ERK1/ERK2 activation (monitored by anti-active ERK1/ERK2 antibody) was almost completely pr...

This study investigated the role of cellular antioxidant defense mechanisms in modulating the neurotoxicity of domoic acid (DomA), by using cerebellar granule neurons (CGNs) from mice lacking the modifier subunit of glutamate-cysteine ligase (Gclm). Glutamate-cysteine ligase (Glc) catalyzes the first and rate-limiting step in glutathione (GSH) biosynthesis. CGNs from Gclm (-/-) mice have very l...

Occupational and environmental exposure to tri-cresyl phosphates (TCPs) may cause various types of neurotoxicity. Among the TCP isomers, tri-ortho-cresyl phosphate is a well-studied organophosphate (OP) known to cause OP-induced delayed neuropathy (OPIDN). Clinically, OPIDN is characterized by limb paralysis caused by the inhibition of neuropathy target esterase. Like other OPs, TOCP may also t...