Amino acid and monoamine transport in primary astroglial cultures from defined brain regions

The uptake of L-[3H]glutamate, L-[3H]aspartate, gamma-[3H]aminobutyric acid (GABA), [3H]dopamine, DL-[3H]norepinephrine and [3H]5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) was studied in astrocytes cultured from the cerebral cortex, striatum and brain stem of newborn rat and grown for 2 weeks in primary cultures. The astrocytes exhibited a high-affinity L-glutamate uptake with Km values ranging from 11 to 110 microM. Vmax values were 4.5 in cerebral cortex, 39.1 in striatum, and 0.4 in brain stem, nmol per mg cell protein per min. There was a less prominent high-affinity uptake of L-aspartate with Km values from 88 to 187 microM. Vmax values were 7.4 in cerebral cortex, 37.1 in striatum, and 3.1 in brain stem, nmol per mg cell protein per min. The high-affinity GABA uptake exhibited Km values ranging from 5 to 17 microM and Vmax values were 0.01 for cerebral cortex, 0.04 for striatum, and 0.1 for brain stem, nmol per mg cell protein per min. No high-affinity, high-capacity uptake was found for the monoamines. The results demonstrate a heterogeneity among the astroglial cells cultivated from the different brain regions concerning the uptake capacity of amino acid neurotransmitters. Furthermore, amino acid transmitters and monoamines are taken up by the cells in different ways.