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Related Experiment Video

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Single Synapse Indicators of Glutamate Release and Uptake in Acute Brain Slices from Normal and Huntington Mice
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Published on: March 11, 2020

Glutamate in dopamine neurons: synaptic versus diffuse transmission.

Laurent Descarries1, Noémie Bérubé-Carrière, Mustapha Riad

  • 1Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada. laurent.descarries@umontreal.ca

Brain Research Reviews
|November 29, 2007
PubMed
Summary

Dopamine neurons in the brain may release glutamate as a co-transmitter. This study shows dopamine terminals co-expressing vesicular glutamate transporter 2 (VGluT2) are consistently synaptic, suggesting a link between glutamate release and synaptic function.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cell Biology
  • Neurochemistry

Background:

  • Dopamine (DA) axon terminals in the CNS exhibit dual morphology, suggesting both diffuse and classical synaptic transmission.
  • Evidence indicates mesencephalic DA neurons may co-release glutamate, a key excitatory neurotransmitter.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the co-expression and localization of vesicular glutamate transporter 2 (VGluT2) in dopamine (DA) terminals.
  • To determine the relationship between VGluT2 expression and synaptic specialization in DA neurons.

Main Methods:

  • Dual immunocytochemical labeling for tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and VGluT2 in rat nucleus accumbens.
  • Electron microscopy to examine TH-positive varicosities co-localizing VGluT2.
  • RT-PCR and in situ hybridization for VGluT2 mRNA in mesencephalic neurons.

Main Results:

  • VGluT2 is co-expressed with TH in a significant proportion of DA axon terminals in the nucleus accumbens.
  • All TH varicosities co-localizing VGluT2 were found to be synaptic.
  • Neonatal 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesioning influenced the co-expression of TH and VGluT2.

Conclusions:

  • Dopamine axon terminals capable of releasing glutamate (indicated by VGluT2 presence) are consistently synaptic.
  • This suggests a functional link between glutamate co-transmission and the establishment of synaptic junctions in the mesotelencephalic DA system.
  • Findings raise fundamental questions about the functioning of the DA system in health and disease.