Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Journal of Biological Chemistry

Publication Date

1995

Volume

270

Issue

12

Disciplines

Medical Sciences | Medicine and Health Sciences | Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Abstract

Arachidonic acid has been proposed to be a messenger molecule released following synaptic activation of glutamate receptors and during ischemia. Here we demonstrate that micromolar levels of arachidonic acid inhibit glutamate uptake mediated by EAAT1, a human excitatory amino acid transporter widely expressed in brain and cerebellum, by reducing the maximal transport rate approximately 30%. In contrast, arachidonic acid increased transport mediated by EAAT2, a subtype abundantly expressed in forebrain and midbrain, by causing the apparent affinity for glutamate to increase more than 2-fold. The results demonstrate that the response of different glutamate transporter subtypes to arachidonic acid could influence synaptic transmission and modulate excitotoxicity via positive or negative feedback according to the transporter(s) present in a particular region.

DOI

10.1074/jbc.270.12.6433

Rights

© 1995 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

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