Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 20, 2026

A High-throughput Calcium-flux Assay to Study NMDA-receptors with Sensitivity to Glycine/D-serine and Glutamate
Published on: July 10, 2018
NMDA receptor-mediated calcium influx plays an essential role in myoblast fusion
Kun Ho Lee1, Jae-Yong Park, Kyungjin Kim
1School of Biological Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, 151-742, Republic of Korea.
Abstract:
Ca2+ influx is known to be prerequisite for myoblast fusion during skeletal muscle differentiation. Here, we show that the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor is involved in the Ca2+ influx of C2C12 myoblasts. NMDA receptor (NR) 1 and NR2D were expressed in the myoblasts during muscle differentiation. Using Ca2+ imaging analysis, Ca2+ influx through NRs was directly measured at a single-cell level. l-Glutamate increased myoblast fusion as well as intracellular Ca2+ levels, and both effects were completely blocked by MK801, a selective antagonist of NRs. Furthermore, treatment with the Ca2+ ionophore A23187 recovered MK801-mediated inhibition of myoblast fusion. These results suggest that the NRs may play an important role in myoblast fusion by mediating Ca2+ influx.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Fusion of Secretory Vesicles with the Plasma Membrane
In 1993, Jim Rothman proposed that the antiparallel pairing of vesicular and transmembrane SNAREs, or...
Calmodulin-dependent Signaling
The Ca2+-CaM complex does not have enzymatic activity by itself. Instead, the complex binds downstream target proteins, including membrane proteins or enzymes,...
Relaxation of Skeletal Muscles
When an action potential reaches the axon terminal, it depolarizes the membrane and opens voltage-gated sodium channels. Sodium ions enter the cell, further depolarizing the presynaptic membrane. This depolarization causes voltage-gated calcium channels to open.
Ligand-Gated Ion Channel Receptor: Gating Mechanism
Feedback Regulation of Calcium Concentration
Various transmembrane receptors, such as G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), elicit a response to extracellular signals by increasing cytosolic calcium. Activated GPCRs...
Smooth Muscle Contraction
The onset of contraction is triggered by an increase in calcium ions within the sarcoplasm, similar to the process in striated muscle. However, smooth muscles have a relatively smaller reservoir of the sarcoplasmic...

