Abstract

The sulphur-containing acidic amino acids (SAAs) display neuroexcitatory actions similar to those of l-glutamate and are widely regarded as bona fide transmitter candidates. In this study, l-cysteine sulphinic acid, l-cysteic acid, dl-homocysteic acid and l-homocysteine sulphinic acid were investigated for their ability to stimulate phosphatidylinositol hydrolysis in rat pup cerebrocortical slices and compared with l-glutamate and the selective agonist (1 S,4 R)-1-aminocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylic acid ((1 S,3 R)-ACPD). Each of the SAAs possessed agonist activity at metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) and, although they exhibited lower efficacy than l-glutamate, they were more potent (EC 50s of 401–487 μM compared with 791 μM for l-glutamate). These data are consistent with the possibility that SAAs may have a physiological role as endogenous activators of metabotropic (and presumably ionotropic) excitatory amino acid receptors.

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