Induction of taurine responsiveness in Xenopus oocytes by messenger RNA from mouse brain

A taurine response was induced in the surface membrane of the oocytes of Xenopus laevis by injection of the mRNA from the neonatal mouse brain, and the response was studied electrophysiologically. The permeability of mRNA-injected oocytes to chloride ions was increased by the application of taurine in a dose-dependent manner. The same oocyte also responded to GABA, but bicuculline suppressed only the GABA response. These results suggest a possibility that taurine could be a neurotransmitter of certain neurons as yet unknown in the central nervous system.