The Effect of Glutamate Receptor Agonists on Mouse Retinal Astrocyte [Ca2+]i

Abstract EN

Calcium-imaging techniques were used to determine if mouse retinal astrocytes in situ respond to agonists of ionotropic (α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid, AMPA; N-methyl-D-aspartate, NMDA) and metabotropic (S-3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine, DHPG; trans-1-amino-1,3-cyclopentanedicarboxylic acid, ACPD) glutamate receptors.

In most cases we found no evidence that retinal astrocyte intracellular calcium ion concentration ( C a 2 + i ) increased in response to these glutamate agonists.

The one exception was AMPA that increased C a 2 + i in some, but not all, mouse retinal astrocytes in situ.

However, AMPA did not increase C a 2 + i in mouse retinal astrocytes in vitro, suggesting that the effect of AMPA in situ may be indirect.