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Published on: August 26, 2014
G Protein-Gated Potassium Channels: A Link to Drug Addiction
Robert A Rifkin1, Stephen J Moss2, Paul A Slesinger3
1Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA; Medical Scientist Training Program, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Abstract:
G protein-gated inwardly rectifying potassium (GIRK) channels are regulators of neuronal excitability in the brain. Knockout mice lacking GIRK channels display altered behavioral responses to multiple addictive drugs, implicating GIRK channels in addictive behaviors. Here, we review the effects of GIRK subunit deletions on the behavioral response to psychostimulants, such as cocaine and methamphetamine. Additionally, exposure of mice to psychostimulants produces alterations in the surface expression of GIRK channels in multiple types of neurons within the reward system of the brain. Thus, we compare the subcellular mechanisms by which drug exposure appears to alter GIRK expression in multiple cell types and provide an outlook on future studies examining the role of GIRK channels in addiction. A greater understanding of how GIRK channels are regulated by addictive drugs may enable the development of therapies to prevent or treat drug abuse.
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