Work

GABA-mediated inhibition of locus coeruleus from the dorsomedial rostral medulla

Year: 1989

Type: article

Abstract: Recent anatomic studies in our laboratory (Aston-Jones et al., 1986) identified the nucleus prepositus hypoglossi (PrH) in the dorsomedial medulla as a major afferent of the locus coeruleus (LC). In the present studies, the influence of projections from PrH to LC was assessed in anesthetized rats. Focal electrical stimulation of PrH inhibited the spontaneous discharge of 42 of 47 LC neurons; the latency to onset of such inhibition was 19.8 +/- 2.5 msec and its duration was 172.4 +/- 10.4 msec. PrH-evoked inhibition of LC neurons was unaffected by administration of the opiate receptor antagonist naloxone or the alpha 2-receptor antagonist idazoxan but was substantially reduced by systemic picrotoxin, an antagonist of GABA. The GABAA receptor antagonist bicuculline methiodide blocked the inhibition from PrH, whether applied by local microinfusion or iontophoresis into the LC. These results lead us to propose that PrH provides a direct inhibitory synaptic input to LC, for which GABA is the likely transmitter.

Source: Journal of Neuroscience

DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.09-08-02973.1989

Authors: M Ennis, G Aston-Jones

Institution: New York University

Language: English

Topic: Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research

Subfield: Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: hybrid

Funders: Office of Naval Research, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke