| First Author | Panicker S | Year | 2008 |
| Journal | Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A | Volume | 105 |
| Issue | 3 | Pages | 1032-7 |
| PubMed ID | 18195349 | Mgi Jnum | J:131170 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3773105 | Doi | 10.1073/pnas.0711313105 |
| Citation | Panicker S, et al. (2008) Synaptic AMPA receptor subunit trafficking is independent of the C terminus in the GluR2-lacking mouse. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 105(3):1032-7 |
| abstractText | Glutamate is the primary excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain, and alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) type glutamate receptors mediate most fast synaptic transmission. AMPA receptors are tetrameric assemblies composed from four possible subunits (GluR1-4). In hippocampal pyramidal cells, AMPA receptors are heteromeric receptors containing the GluR2 subunit and either GluR1 or GluR3. It is generally accepted that the trafficking of GluR1/GluR2 receptors to synapses requires activity, whereas GluR2/GluR3 receptors traffic constitutively. It has been suggested that the trafficking is governed by the cytoplasmic C termini of the subunits. Because the basis for this theory relied on the introduction of unnatural, homomeric, calcium-permeable AMPA receptors, we have used the GluR2(-/-) knock out mouse to determine whether the expression of mutated forms of GluR2 can rescue WT synaptic responses. We find that GluR2, lacking its entire C terminus, or a GluR2 chimera containing the C terminus of GluR1, is capable of trafficking to the synapse in the absence of activity. These findings suggest that the GluR2 C terminus is not required for GluR2 synaptic insertion. |
