PMID: 8613794Jan 1, 1996Paper

Laminar compartmentalization of GABAA-receptor subtypes in the spinal cord: an immunohistochemical study

The Journal of Neuroscience : the Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience
S BohlhalterJ M Fritschy

Abstract

To assess the significance of GABAA-receptor heterogeneity, which is based on a family of at least 15 subunits, the cellular localization and subunit composition of GABAA-receptor subtypes were analyzed immunohistochemically in the rat spinal cord. The distribution of subunits alpha 1, alpha 2, alpha 3, alpha 5, beta 2,3, and gamma 2 was investigated with subunit-specific antibodies, and their colocalization within individual neurons was visualized by double-immunofluorescence staining. The results reveal a widespread expression of the subunits, alpha 3, beta 2,3, and gamma 2 in the spinal cord, whereas the three other alpha subunits displayed a more restricted, lamina-specific distribution. The alpha 1 and alpha 5 subunits were most abundant in the intermediate zone, whereas the alpha 2 subunit was predominant in the superficial layers of the dorsal horn and in somatic and preganglionic motoneurons. From colocalization studies, seven subunit combinations could be identified (alpha 3/beta 2,3/gamma 2; alpha 2/beta 2,3/gamma 2; alpha 1/beta 2,3/gamma 2; alpha 5/beta 2,3/gamma 2; alpha 1/alpha 5/beta 2,3/gamma 2; alpha 2/gamma 2; alpha 2/alpha 5/gamma 2) that correspond presumably to distinct receptor subtypes. Although most neur...Continue Reading

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