Week 3- Glutamate Flashcards
what is glutamate? how is glutamate synthesises and where?
-its in all cells and its an amino acid • Glutamate can be synthesised in the pre-synaptic neuronal terminal • from glucose (via TCA cycle) • from glutamine (by action of glutaminase)
there are 2 types of glutamate receptors what are they?
-Metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs)
• GPCRs
-Ionotropic glutamate receptors
• Ligand-gated ion channels
• 3 classes of receptor called NMDA receptors, AMPA receptors and kainate
receptors
how are ionotropic glutamate receptors separated?
• Three subtypes are separated on
responsiveness to synthetic analogues
what activates ionotropic glutamate receptors?
• All activated by L-glutamate
what are the properities and structure of the ionotropic glutamtae receptors?
• Different pharmacological properties
• Different biophysical properties and
functional effects in neurons
• All have similar structures; tetramers
what are the main facts about NMDA receptors? sub units, shape
- Assembled from 7 potential subunits encoded by 7 different genes
- GluN1, GluN2A, GluN2B, GluN2C, GluN2D, GluN3A, GluN3B
- The receptor is a tetrameric complex
- Hetero-tetramers – mixture of subunits
- Typically 2 GluN1 and 2 GluN2 subunits come together
- Alternative splicing can affect the GluN1 gene (8 variants identified)
what is the NMDA receptors structure like?
• Each subunit of the tetramer has: • Extracellular N-terminal domain labelled ATD • An extracellular ligand-binding domain (LBD) - binds the agonist • Three transmembrane spanning α-helical domains (M1, M3, M4) and • One re-entrant P-loop called M2 • An intracellular C-terminus (CTD)
the subunits that make up then NMDA receptor affect the properities? which properties?
• Agonist and coagonist potency • Deactivation rate • Magnesium • Ion permeation • Channel conductance • GluN2 subunits affect pharmacology of NMDAR
how many drug binding sites are there for NMDA receptors?
5
what are the 5 different drug binding sites for NMDA receptors?
- Glutamate (agonist site)
- Glycine site
- Polyamine binding site
- Mg2+ site
- Channel blocking site
how is the NMDA receptor activated at the glutamate binding site?
-glutamate is the ligand
• Each tetramer binds two molecules of glutamate
• EC50 value for glutamate is 0.5-3.3 µM (dictated by GluN2 subunit)
• NMDA is a synthetic agonist that will act at the same binding site
-for full activation a co-agonist is needed
• 2 molecules of glycine are required (co-agonist) - EC50 value 1 µM
• D-serine, D-alanine can also act as a co-agonist
• GluN1 is the glycine-binding subunit
what are the 5 different drug binding sites for NMDA receptors?
- Glutamate (agonist site)
- Glycine site
- Polyamine binding site
- Mg2+ site
- Channel blocking site
what are some competitive antagonists at the glutamate site?
- drug called D-AP5
Limited drug development due to conservation of glutamate binding site
between NMDAR, AMPAR, KainateR
how is the NMDA receptor activated at the magnesium binding site?
• Mg2+ site • Channel is blocked by Mg2+ at resting neuronal membrane potentials • This feature gives NMDA receptor voltage dependent channel block -prevent ions moving down channel -ion is blocked at resting ion potential whihc is -60-70mV and is membrane dependant blocked as membrane becomes depolarised it removes the block
how is the NMDA receptor activated at the magnesium binding site?
• Mg2+ site • Channel is blocked by Mg2+ at resting neuronal membrane potentials • This feature gives NMDA receptor voltage dependent channel block -prevent ions moving down channel -ion is blocked at resting ion potential whihc is -60-70mV and is membrane dependant blocked as membrane becomes depolarised it removes the block