Rapid activation and desensitization by glutamate of excitatory, cation-selective channels in locust muscle

  • Josef Dudel
  • , Christian Franke
  • , Hanns Hatt
  • , Robert L. Ramsey
  • , Peter N.R. Usherwood

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

43 Scopus citations

Abstract

Outside-out patches of membrane were excised from extensor tibiae muscles of locusts. l-Glutamate or its agonists were applied to such patches in short pulses by means of a liquid filament switch. Cation-selective, excitatory channels were activated by quisqualate, l-glutamate and aspartate (in decreasing order of effectivity), but not by ibotenate, kainate, N-methyl-d-aspartate and glycine. At high agonist concentrations, channel activation reached a peak within 1 ms. Two kinetic types of channels have been identified: L-channels with on average relatively long and S-channels with short openings. Both types of channel openings showed surprisingly high rates of desensitization, channel activity declining after the initial surge to zero with time constants of about 25 and 3 ms, respectively. The L-channels exhibit open times close to those of channels recorded in MΩ-seal studies. The S-channel has not been reported previously.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)33-38
Number of pages6
JournalNeuroscience Letters
Volume88
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 16 May 1988

Keywords

  • Excitatory membrane channel
  • Locust muscle
  • Outside-out patch
  • Rapid desensitization
  • l-Glutamate pulse

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