Inhibition of hippocampal field potentials by GYKI 52466 in vitro and in vivo

GYKI 52466 is a specific antagonist of the neuronal excitation mediated by the non-NMDA type excitatory amino acid receptors, at several sites in the central nervous system. The experiments presented here show that the drug has a dose-dependent, slowly developing, long-lasting and reversible inhibitory action on the field potentials recorded from the CA1 region of the rat hippocampus, in vitro. Its action is similar to that of the well-known non-NMDA receptor blocker, CNQX. When the stimulus intensity-dependence of the population spikes was investigated, both drugs shifted the input-output curves in a parallel manner, while the maximum responses were only slightly depressed at the doses applied. With i.v. application, GYKI 52466 also inhibited the hippocampal field potentials recorded from the CA1 region of anesthetized rats dose-dependently. The inhibition was relatively weak compared to the effect found in earlier studies in the spinal cord, by the same doses. Four mg/kg i.v., a doses which is able to block spinal reflexes completely, caused an only about 20% depression of the recorded responses in the hippocampal CA1 area.