Two-color, one-photon uncaging of glutamate and GABA

Stefan Passlick, Paul F. Kramer, Matthew T. Richers, John T. Williams, Graham C.R. Ellis-Davies

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

Neuronal cells receive a variety of excitatory and inhibitory signals which they process to generate an output signal. In order to study the interaction between excitatory and inhibitory receptors with exogenously applied transmitters in the same preparation, two caging chromophores attached to glutamate and GABA were developed that were selectively photolyzed by different wavelengths of light. This technique has the advantage that the biologically inactive caged compound can be applied at equilibrium prior to the near instantaneous release of the transmitters. This method therefore mimics the kinetics of endogenously released transmitters that is otherwise not possible in brain slice preparations. Repeated photolysis with either of the two wavelengths resulted in GABA- or glutamate-induced activation of both ionotropic and metabotropic receptors to evoke reproducible currents. With these compounds, the interaction between inhibitory and excitatory receptors was examined using whole field photolysis.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article numbere0187732
JournalPloS one
Volume12
Issue number11
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 2017

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
  • General Agricultural and Biological Sciences
  • General

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