Glutamate

Astrocytes release glutamate by regulated exocytosis in health and disease Vladimir Parpura, International Translational Neuroscience Research Institute, Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, P.R. China Parpura will present you with the evidence that astrocytes, a subtype of glial cells in the brain, can exocytotically release the neurotransmitter glutamate and how this release is regulated. Spatiotemporal characteristic of vesicular fusion that underlie glutamate release in astrocytes will be discussed. He will also present data on a translational project in which this release pathwa

Noradrenergic (NA) neurons originating from the locus coeruleus (LC) serve as the primary source of noradrenaline in the brain and play a critical role in arousal and cognitive functions. Previous studies have shown a potential link between astrocyte activity in the LC and emotional dysfunction, and suggested that astrocytes may influence NA neuron activity by modulating extracellular ion and neurotransmitter concentrations or by releasing gliotransmitters. However, there is currently no evidence for direct communication between astrocytes and NA neurons in the LC. In this study, we addressed

…regulation by interacting with both glutamate and GABA. Little is known about how nitrergic system works in the autistic brain, although several studies suggest that dysregulations in this system may be involved in the pathogenesis of autism.We

…Glutamate as an important neurotransmitter which is crucial for many cognitive functions can modulate astrocytic Ca2+ signaling via their receptors. Considering that these processes have largely been studied in young animals, along with the association of aging with various diseases, this study aims to explore the age-dependent changes i

…DA neurons that express the vesicular glutamate transporter VGLUT2 and these cells can co-release the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate. There are also several lines of evidence indicating that the inhibitory neurotransmitter gamma-amino-butyric acid (GABA) can be released from subsets of DA neurons. However, DA neurons do neither express the machinery to synthesize GABA nor the vesicular GABA transporter VGAT typically thought to be necessary for vesicular GABA uptake. Inste

…of mammalian eyes, by releasing glutamate. The innervation of ipRGCs to SCN has been revealed by using genetic tracing techniques and contributes to the synchronization of the circadian rhythm. SCN is a heterogenous structure that contains different neurons, while AVP and VIP neurons are critical for the networking of circadian rhythm.

A growing body of evidence emphasizes that hypometabolism taking place in astrocytes may compromise their physiological neuro-supportive role and activate a set of pathophysiological pathways contributing to the progression of neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer disease (AD) [1]. Here, we explored the potential role of astrocytes in driving a cascade of detrimental effects in the neighboring neurons and investigated a possible approach to limit the injury in both cell types [2]. To this aim, primary rat cortical astrocytes were exposed to glyceraldehyde (GA) to induce a metabolic s

…states, pointing to a connection with glutamatergic activity. In our investigation, conducted over three time points with 7-week intervals, we collected a comprehensive dataset comprising resting-state and task-based fMRI signals, DTI data, and metabolic details, particularly focusing

AimStriatal cholinergic interneurons (CINs) use both acetylcholine (ACh) and glutamate (Glu) to regulate the striatal network. CINs express vesicular transporters for acetylcholine (VAChT) and Glu (VGLUT3). We recently demonstrated, using super resolution STimulated Emission Depletion microscopy (STED) microscopy, that part of cholinergic synaptic vesicles (SVs) contains both VAChT and VGLUT3, whereas others express only VAChT or only VGLUT3. CINs SVs are thus able to release either ACh or Glu or both. However, the link between neurotransmitters accumulation into SVs and their final exocytosis

…on gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate. We aimed to explore the relevance of drivers of plasticity (glutamate- and GABA-dependent processes) for the effects of serotonin enhancement on tDCS-induced plasticity in healthy humans. A crossover, partially double-bli

…resonance frequencies such as glutamate and glutamine, key metabolites in excitatory pr

…Astrocytes were shown to sense glutamate, the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain, which occurs by acti

Background: The lateral hypothalamus (LH), known to play roles in modulation of reward, avoidance, and preference, projects to the associated brain regions such as the ventral tegmental area (VTA), lateral habenula (LHb), and rostromedial tegmental nucleus (RMTg). Previous studies have established that LH neurons projecting to LHb influence cocaine-induced behavior and dopamine release. However, the specific neuronal populations and the peptides involved in cocaine-induced behavioral effects have not been elucidated.Purpose: To address this, our study aimed to investigate the roles of LH neuro

Transcranial ultrasound neuromodulation (TUS) is a fast growing non-invasive brain stimulation method allowing reversible and local perturbation of the neuronal activity in superficial but also deep-brain structures. Although TUS efficiency has been shown at the circuit and behavioral levels, its precise impact on the neuronal tissue remains a subject of ongoing investigation. Using resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI) and MRI spectroscopy (MRS), we characterized both the functional and metabolic effects of TUS on a subcortical structure, the amygdala.In two anaesthetized non-human primates, We select

…the decrement of glutamine (Gln) and glutamate (Glu) is found in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), which results in low-

Sleep strongly affects synaptic strength, making it critical for cognition, especially learning and memory formation. Whether and how sleep deprivation modulates human brain physiology and cognition is poorly understood. Here we examined how overnight sleep deprivation vs overnight sufficient sleep affects (a) cortical excitability, measured by transcranial magnetic stimulation, (b) inducibility of long-term potentiation (LTP)- and long-term depression (LTD)-like plasticity via transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), and (c) learning, memory, and attention. We found that sleep deprivat

Focal neocortical epilepsy is associated with intermittent brief population discharges (interictal spikes), which resemble sentinel spikes that often occur at the onset of seizures. Why interictal spikes self-terminate whilst seizures persist and propagate is incompletely understood, but is likely to relate to the intermittent collapse of feed-forward GABAergic inhibition. Inhibition could fail through multiple mechanisms, including (i) an attenuation or even reversal of the driving force for chloride in postsynaptic neurons because of intense activation of GABAA receptors, (ii) an elevation o

Pediatric high-grade gliomas (pHGG) are a devastating group of diseases that urgently require novel therapeutic options. We have previously demonstrated that pHGGs directly synapse onto neurons and the subsequent tumor cell depolarization, mediated by calcium-permeable AMPA channels, promotes their proliferation. The regulatory mechanisms governing these postsynaptic connections are unknown. Here, we investigated the role of BDNF-TrkB signaling in modulating the plasticity of the malignant synapse. BDNF ligand activation of its canonical receptor, TrkB (which is encoded for by the gene NTRK2),

…(improved versions for following glutamate, GABA, acetylcholine, serotonin), optogenetic effectors including the new “enhanced Magnets” dimerizers, AAV serotypes for retrograde labeling & altered tropism, probes for correlative light-electron microscopy, chemical gene switches, etc. He will make all his slides freely available - so don’t wo

…acute stress to metaplastic changes at glutamate synapses, and also show how stress, and these synaptic changes can be transmitted

Cerebral infection by the larvae of the cestode, Taenia solium (neurocysticercosis), is thought to be the leading cause of adult-acquired epilepsy worldwide. Despite this, little is known about the cellular mechanisms that underlie seizure development in this condition. In this talk I will present our recent data exploring multiple interactions between cestode larvae, neuroinflammatory processes and network excitability. We find that viable cestode larvae are able to strongly suppress microglial activation and inflammatory cytokine release with consequences for the modulation host neuroinflamm

Dr. Looger will discuss reagents for tracking Ca2+, membrane potential ("voltage"), glutamate, GABA, acetylcholine, serotonin, dopamine, etc. He will also cover optogenetics tools and methods for correlative light/electron microscopy. They make all tools freely available to everyone and work to get them in the hands of people that have limited resources.

…neurochemical changes we observe in glutamate and GABA during various paradigms, including simple motors tasks and reinforcement learning. In the second part, I’ll present a new approach to MRS that focuses on measuring the relaxation times (T1, T2) of metabolites, which reflect changes to specific cellular microenvironments. I will explain why these can be exciting markers for studying several in-vivo pa

My research uses a range of methods to better understand how the brain’s natural chemicals control complex behaviours, thoughts and perceptions. I also have a particular fascination about the factors that determine the contents of an individual’s conscious experience. In this talk I will present work that sits at the intersection of these two research areas looking at the role of different neurotransmitter systems in driving changes in conscious state. Specifically, I will discuss a series of studies using ambiguous stimuli to explore the neuropharmacological processes that underly alternation