M4 mAChR Subtypes Research Articles

ERKI/II Regulation by the Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptors in Neurons

Muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChRs) are known to be involved in learning and memory, but the molecular basis of their involvement is not well understood. The availability of new and specific biochemical tools has revealed a crucial role for the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family in learning and memory. Here, we examine the link between mAChRs and MAPK in neurons. Using the MAPK kinase (MEK)-specific inhibitor PD98059, we first demonstrate a necessary role for active ERKI/II in long-term potentiation in vivo. Using phospho-specific antibodies that recognize the activated form of ERKI/II, we find that the level of ERKI/II activation in brain is regulated by mAChRs. Carbachol, a muscarinic agonist, induces prolonged activation of ERKI/II, without effect on the related kinase SAPK/JNK (stress-activated protein kinase/c-Jun N-terminal protein kinase) in primary cortical cultures. ERKI/II activation is Src-dependent and partially phosphoinositide-3 kinase- and Ca(2+)-dependent but is PKC-independent. M1-M4 mAChR subtypes expressed in COS-7 cells can all induce ERKI/II activation using a signal transduction pathway similar to that operating in neurons. The nature of the signal transduction suggests that ERKI/II can serve as a convergence site for mAChR activation and other neurotransmitter receptors.

Functional acetylcholine muscarinic receptor subtypes in human brain microcirculation: identification and cellular localization.

Acetylcholine is an important regulator of local cerebral blood flow. There is, however, limited information available on the possible sites of action of this neurotransmitter on brain intraparenchymal microvessels. In this study, a combination of molecular and functional approaches was used to identify which of the five muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChR) are present in human brain microvessels and their intimately associated astroglial cells. Microvessel and capillary fractions isolated from human cerebral cortex were found by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction to express m2, m3, and, occasionally, m1 and m5 receptor subtypes. To localize these receptors to a specific cellular compartment of the vessel wall, cultures of human brain microvascular endothelial and smooth muscle cells were used, together with cultured human brain astrocytes. Endothelial cells invariably expressed m2 and m5 receptors, and occasionally the m1 receptor; smooth muscle cells exhibited messages for all except the m4 mAChR subtypes, whereas messages for all five muscarinic receptors were identified in astrocytes. In all three cell types studied, acetylcholine induced a pirenzepine-sensitive increase (62% to 176%, P<0.05 to 0.01) in inositol trisphosphate, suggesting functional coupling of m1, m3, or m5 mAChR to a phospholipase C signaling cascade. Similarly, coupling of m2 or m4 mAChR to adenylate cyclase inhibition in endothelial cells and astrocytes, but not in smooth muscle cells, was demonstrated by the ability of carbachol to significantly reduce (44% to 50%, P<0.05 to 0.01) the forskolin-stimulated increase in cAMP levels. This effect was reversed by the mAChR antagonist AFDX 384. The results indicate that microvessels are able to respond to neurally released acetylcholine and that mAChR, distributed in different vascular and astroglial compartments, could regulate cortical perfusion and, possibly, blood-brain barrier permeability, functions that could become jeopardized in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease.

Muscarinic acetylcholine receptor-mediated induction of zif268 mRNA in PC12D cells requires protein kinase C and the influx of extracellular calcium.

The immediate-early gene zif268 (egr-1, NGFI-A, krox-24) encodes a transcription factor that has been proposed to play a role in differentiation and neuronal plasticity. zif268 mRNA is undetectable in unstimulated PC12D cells, a subline of PC12 characterized by accelerated differentiation in the presence of nerve growth factor, but is rapidly and robustly induced following exposure to muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) agonists. Although PC12D cells express mRNAs for both m1 and m4 mAChR subtypes, induction of zif268 mRNA by mAChR agonists is apparently mediated exclusively by the m1 subtype because the induction is completely blocked by Dendroaspis angusticeps m1 toxin. Pretreatment of the cells with the specific protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor GF109203X partially inhibits mAChR-mediated induction of zif268 mRNA. The remaining induction is blocked by chelation of extracellular calcium with EGTA. EGTA prevents the influx of calcium without blocking mAChR-mediated release of calcium from internal stores. These data indicate that both PKC and the influx of extracellular calcium play a role in the induction of zif268 mRNA following activation of the m1 mAChR. Transient increases in intracellular calcium levels resulting from the release of calcium from internal stores alone are not sufficient to induce zif268 mRNA. Rather, induction requires a prolonged elevation of intracellular calcium levels, which is sustained by the influx of extracellular calcium.

In vitro autoradiographic and radioligand binding assay evidence for the presence of M2, M3, and M4 mAChR subtypes in rat spinal cord

In vitro autoradiographic and radioligand binding assay evidence for the presence of M2, M3, and M4 mAChR subtypes in rat spinal cord

In vitro pharmacological properties of 4-bromodexetimide for muscarinic receptors

The decrease of m-AChR density observed hi neurodegenerative disorders has generated considerable interest in non-invasive mapping of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (m-AChR) in the central nervous system. The ami of our study was to evaluate the selectivity of 4-bromodexetimide for the M1, M2, M3 and M4 m-AChR subtypes using in vitro binding analysis to determine the potential use of the bromine-76 labelled 4-bromodexetimide in the investigation of m-AChR subtypes in human brain with Positron Emission Tomography. Subtype selectivity of 4-bromodexetimide was determined in competition studies against tritiated subtype selective ligands using various rat or rabbit structure homogenates reflecting a single binding site and in optimal saturation and low non specific binding conditions. These conditions were reached for every subtype studied by analyzing the data from the saturation experiments of the tritiated ligands. 4-bromodexetimide displayed nanomolar affinities for the four m-AChR subtypes and a preferential selectivity for the M1 and M4 subtypes. The saturation analysis of [ 76Br]4-bromodexetimide, performed with rat cortex membranes showed high affinity for m-AChR receptors (K d = 1.8 nM). As in vivo studies of [ 76Br]4-bromodexetimide showed preferential localization in the cortex and the striatum which are M1 and M4 rich structures and since it binds preferentially to the M 1 and M 4 subtypes, this radiotracer can still allow a combined subtype specific measurement of these muscarinic receptors.

Traumatic brain injury causes a decrease in M2 muscarinic cholinergic receptor binding in the rat brain

Numerous studies indicate that an acute, excessive activation of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChR) contributes to the pathophysiological sequela of TBI. The present study examined the effect of moderate fluid percussion traumatic brain injury (TBI) on binding to M1 and M2 mAChR subtypes in the hippocampal formation and adjacent cortex using quantitative autoradiography. Injured animals along with concurrent controls were sacrificed by in situ freezing at 3 h or 24 h following TBI. Slide-mounted tissue sections were incubated in either [ 3H]pirenzipine (23 nM) for M1 or [ 3H]AFDX384 (9 nM) for M2 mAChR subtype labeling. Binding of [ 3H]pirenzipine to the M1 mAChR subtype was not significantly altered by TBI when compared to sham-injured animals. [ 3H]AFDX384 binding to the M2 mAChR subtype was significantly decreased at 24 h in hippocampal CA2-3 region and dorsal blade of the dentate gyrus ( P < 0.05) The difference observed between M1 and M2 subtypes suggests that these muscarinic subtypes may differentially contribute to the pathophysiology of TBI.

Localization of muscarinic receptor subtypes in brain stem areas regulating sleep.

Muscarinic cholinergic receptors (mAChRs) within the pontine brain stem play a key role in generating rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Using an in vitro autoradiographic technique that permits selective labeling of mAChR subtypes by radioligand binding, this study provides the first quantitative map of mAChR subtypes in cat brain stem areas important for REM sleep generation. M1, M2 and M3 mAChR subtypes were distributed heterogeneously throughout the brain stem. For all 3 mAChR subtypes, the greatest levels of binding were found in the dorsal raphe and locus coeruleus, and the least amount of binding was in the reticular formation. These findings are consistent with data from in vivo studies showing that multiple mAChR subtypes are involved in REM sleep generation.

Coupling of transfected muscarinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes to phospholipase D.

Muscarinic receptor-induced changes in the activities of phospholipase D (PLD) and of phosphoinositide-phospholipase C (PI-PLC) were investigated in human embryonic kidney (HEK) cells transfected with, and stably expressing, the human m1, m2, m3, and m4 mAChR subtypes, respectively. PLD and PI-PLC activities in these four transfected cell lines as well as in nontransfected cells were measured by the formation of [3H]phosphatidylethanol [( 3H]PEt) and [3H]inositol phosphates [( 3H]IP) after labeling cellular phospholipids with [3H]oleic acid and [3H]inositol. The muscarinic receptor agonist carbachol had no significant effects on [3H]PEt and [3H]IP formation in nontransfected HEK cells. In cells expressing the m1 or m3 receptors carbachol (1 mM; in the presence of 400 mM ethanol and 10 mM lithium chloride) caused the formation of [3H]PEt of about 12,000 cpm/mg protein (basal PEt formation was not measurable) and increased [3H]IP formation by 20,000-30,000 cpm/mg (a 7-10-fold increase over basal levels). The EC50 values (0.3-1.5 microM) were similar for both effects and both mAChR subtypes. In contrast, in cells expressing m2 or m4 receptor subtypes the magnitude of [3H]PEt (about 4,000 cpm/mg protein) or [3H]IP (3,000-4,000 cpm/mg) formation was much smaller and the EC50 values (20-40 microM) much higher than for the m1 and m3 receptors. Neomycin (1 mM) inhibited the m1 and m3 receptor-mediated production of IP by 50%, whereas the PEt formation was attenuated by 20% in the same cells. We conclude that activation of all of the four mAChR subtypes, although with different efficiencies, can stimulate PLD. The m1 and m3 receptor-mediated stimulation of the PLD may be at least partially independent of the PI-PLC stimulation.

Expression and Agonist‐Induced Down‐Regulation of mRNAs of m2‐ and m3‐Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptors in Cultured Cerebellar Granule Cells

The regulation and expression of muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) mRNA was studied in cultured cerebellar granule cells using Northern blot hybridization, mRNA species for m2- and m3-mAChRs but not m1- and m4-mAChRs were detected in these cells. The expression of mRNAs of both m2- and m3-mAChRs reached a maximum on the tenth day in culture but their expression patterns differed. Treatment of cerebellar granule cells after 8 days in culture with 100 microM carbachol led to differential down-regulation of the mRNA species of both mAChR subtypes present. Muscarinic receptor antagonists, atropine (1 microM) and pirenzepine (10 microM), prevented carbachol-induced m3-mAChR mRNA down-regulation observed at 8 h. However, exposure to either atropine or pirenzepine alone for 8 h led to a significant up-regulation of m3-mAChR mRNA. Thus, the mRNA species for both m2- and m3-mAChR subtypes are differentially expressed in culture and down-regulated by agonist stimulation. The loss of these mRNA species may play a role in the down-regulation of mAChR binding sites that occurs after desensitization.

Primary cultures of corticostriatal cells from newborn rats: A model to study muscarinic receptor subtypes regulation and function

In the present work we characterized both the presynaptic and postsynaptic components of cholinergic transmission in a primary culture of corticostriatal neurons prepared from newborn rat brain. This culture preparation contains a small population of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) immunoreactive neurons, corresponding to approximately 3% of the total cell number, and synthesizes increasing amounts of acetylcholine (ACh) from the third day in vitro (DIV), which reaches a plateau around the 10 day of culture. Muscarinic cholinergic receptors (mAChR), measured by the binding of the muscarinic antagonist [3H]quinuclidinyl benzilate ([3H]QNB), are detectable from the fifth DIV and increase linearly during the time of culture. At the twelfth DIV, the density of mAChRs (approximately 600 fmol/mg protein) is comparable to the density of mAChR in adult rat cortex. These receptors are coupled to second messenger systems, since muscarinic agonists inhibit adenylate cyclase activity and stimulate phosphoinositide breakdown with efficacies and potencies similar to those found in adult rat cortex. Moreover, by using the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique, we were able to demonstrate the presence of the m1, m3, and m4 mAChR subtype mRNAs in this neuronal culture at 12 DIV. Our data suggest that corticostriatal neuronal cultures develop in vitro ACh-synthesizing neurons and functionally active cholinergic receptors. This therefore makes them ideally suited to study the development and properties of brain mAChR subtypes.

3H]N‐Methylscopolamine Binding Studies Reveal M2 and M3 Muscarinic Receptor Subtypes on Cerebellar Granule Cells in Primary Culture

Saturation experiments with the muscarinic antagonist [3H]N-methylscopolamine ([3H]NMS) indicated that cerebellar granule cells in primary culture possess a high density of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChRs): Bmax = 1.85 +/- 0.01 pmol/mg of protein at 10 days in culture; KD = 0.128 +/- 0.01 nM. The selective M1 antagonist pirenzepine displaced [3H]NMS binding with a low affinity (Ki = 273 +/- 13 nM), whereas the M2/M3 muscarinic antagonist 4-diphenylacetoxy-N-methylpiperidine methiodide competed with [3H]NMS with Ki values in the nanomolar range, a result suggesting that some of the mAChRs on cerebellar granule cells belong to the M3 subtype. Methoctramine, which discriminates between M2 and M3 subtypes with high and low affinity, respectively, displayed a high and low affinity for [3H]NMS binding sites (Ki(H) = 31 +/- 5 nM; Ki(L) = 2,620 +/- 320 nM). These results provide the first demonstration that both M2 and M3 mAChR subtypes may be present on cultured cerebellar cells. In addition, complete death of neurons induced by N-methyl-D-aspartate (100 microM for 1 h) reduced by 85% the specific binding of [3H]NMS, a result indicating that most mAChRs were associated with neuronal components. Finally, the evolution of the density of mAChRs, labeled by [3H]NMS, correlated with the neuronal maturation during the in vitro development of these cells.