Solubilization of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor channel complex from rat and porcine brain

The N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor complex as defined by the binding of [3H]MK-801 has been solubilized from membranes prepared from both rat and porcine brain using the anionic detergent deoxycholate (DOC). Of the detergents tested DOC extracted the most receptors (21% for rat, 34% for pig), and the soluble complex, stabilized by the presence of MK-801, could be stored for up to 1 week at 4 degrees C with less than 25% loss in activity. Receptor preparations from both species exhibited [3H]MK-801 binding properties in solution very similar to those observed in membranes (Bmax = 485 +/- 67 fmol/mg of protein, KD = 11.5 +/- 2.9 nM in rat; Bmax = 728 +/- 108 fmol/mg of protein, KD = 7.1 +/- 1.6 nM in pig, n = 3). The pharmacological profile of the solubilized [3H]MK-801 binding site was virtually identical to that observed in membranes. The rank order of potency of: MK-801 greater than (-)-MK-801 = thienylcyclohexylpiperidine greater than dexoxadrol greater than SKF 10,047 greater than ketamine, for inhibition of [3H]MK-801 binding, was observed in all preparations. The receptor complex in solution exhibited many of the characteristic modulations observed in membranes.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)