Role of the alpha subunit in the modulation of GABA(A) receptors by anabolic androgenic steroids

Neural transmission mediated by circuits expressing α₂ subunit-containing γ-aminobutyric acid type A (GABA_A) receptors is critical for the expression of behaviors known to be altered by anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS). Here we show that micromolar concentrations of AAS, which reflect levels found in steroid abusers, induce positive modulation of currents from α₂β₃γ_2L recombinant receptors elicited by pulses of GABA that mimic synaptic conditions in a manner that is mechanistically distinct from modulation induced at α₁β₃γ_2L receptors. Specifically, at α₂-containing receptors, the AAS, 17α-methyltestosterone (17α-MeT) enhanced peak current, slowed deactivation, diminished desensitization, and promoted entry of receptors into more distal states along the activation pathway. Analysis of GABA_A receptor-mediated synaptic currents in primary cortical neurons followed by single cell real-time RT-PCR demonstrated that 17α-MeT enhancement of synaptic currents is proportional to the ratio of α₂ to α₁ subunit mRNA. Finally, we show that the modulation elicited by AAS is not comparable to that produced by micromolar concentrations of other positive allosteric modulators at α₂-containing receptors. In sum, these data indicate that AAS elicit effects on GABA_A receptor function that depend significantly on α subunit composition and that the mechanism of AAS modulation of GABA_A receptors is distinct from that of other positive allosteric modulators.     

Discriminative stimulus effects of pregnanolone in rhesus monkeys

Rationale

Neuroactive steroids and benzodiazepines can positively modulate GABA by acting at distinct binding sites on synaptic GABA_A receptors. Although these receptors are thought to mediate the behavioral effects of both benzodiazepines and neuroactive steroids, other receptors (e.g., extrasynaptic GABA_A, N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA), σ₁, or 5-HT₃ receptors) might contribute to the effects of neuroactive steroids, accounting for differences among positive modulators.

Objective

The current study established the neuroactive steroid pregnanolone as a discriminative stimulus to determine whether actions in addition to positive modulation of synaptic GABA_A receptors might contribute to its discriminative stimulus effects.

Methods

Four rhesus monkeys discriminated 5.6 mg/kg pregnanolone while responding under a fixed-ratio 10 schedule of stimulus-shock termination.

Results

Positive modulators acting at benzodiazepine, barbiturate, or neuroactive steroid sites produced ≥80 % pregnanolone-lever responding, whereas drugs acting primarily at receptors other than synaptic GABA_A receptors, such as extrasynaptic GABA_A, NMDA, σ₁, and 5-HT₃ receptors, produced vehicle-lever responding. Flumazenil antagonized the benzodiazepines midazolam and flunitrazepam, with Schild analyses yielding slopes that did not deviate from unity and pA₂ values of 7.39 and 7.32, respectively. Flumazenil did not alter the discriminative stimulus effects of pregnanolone.

Conclusion

While these results do not exclude the possibility that pregnanolone acts at receptors other than synaptic GABA_A receptors, they indicate a primary and possibly exclusive role of synaptic GABA_A receptors in its discriminative stimulus effects. Reported differences in the effects of benzodiazepines and neuroactive steroids are not due to differences in their actions at synaptic GABA_A receptors.     

The quest for the treatment of cognitive impairment: α7 nicotinic and α5 GABAA receptor modulators

Age, age-related pathologies, certain psychiatric disorders, head traumas and other conditions are characterised by an impairment of cognitive functions. Cognition is a complex process involving a large number of neurotransmitters that can modulate, positively or negatively, learning and memory; therefore, their receptors may represent suitable targets to develop cognition-enhancing drugs. Among others, the α₇ nicotinic cholinergic receptor and the α₅ GABA_A receptor are emerging as attractive targets for developing therapeutics in this field. The important role of α₇ nicotinic receptors has been proven thanks to the discovery of α₇-selective agonists, such as GTS-21 and AR-R17779, which has stimulated the synthesis of a large number of new compounds, some of which are in clinical trials. The observation that the classical tranquilliser benzodiazepines (agonists that potentiate GABA_A receptor functions), are amnesic, while inverse agonists (that attenuate the functions of the same receptor) improve cognitive tasks, stimulated the search for modulators mainly directed toward the α₅-containing GABA_A receptor, which seems at present the most important GABA_A receptor subtype involved in cognitive processes. This article reviews the patents on modulators of α₇ nicotinic acetylcholine and GABA_A receptors disclosed during the period 2000 – 2006.     

Novel compounds selectively enhance δ subunit containing GABAA receptors and increase tonic currents in thalamus

Inhibition in the brain is dominated by the neurotransmitter γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA); operating through GABA_A receptors. This form of neural inhibition was presumed to be mediated by synaptic receptors, however recent evidence has highlighted a previously unappreciated role for extrasynaptic GABA_A receptors in controlling neuronal activity. Synaptic and extrasynaptic GABA_A receptors exhibit distinct pharmacological and biophysical properties that differentially influence brain physiology and behavior. Here we used a fluorescence-based assay and cell lines expressing recombinant GABA_A receptors to identify a novel series of benzamide compounds that selectively enhance, or activate α4β3δ GABA_A receptors (cf. α4β3γ2 and α1β3γ2). Utilising electrophysiological methods, we illustrate that one of these compounds, 4-chloro-N-[6,8-dibromo-2-(2-thienyl)imidazo[1,2-a]pyridine-3-yl benzamide (DS1) potently (low nM) enhances GABA-evoked currents mediated by α4β3δ receptors. At similar concentrations DS1 directly activates this receptor and is the most potent known agonist of α4β3δ receptors. 4-chloro-N-[2-(2-thienyl)imidazo[1,2-a]pyridine-3-yl benzamide (DS2) selectively potentiated GABA responses mediated by α4β3δ receptors, but was not an agonist.Recent studies have revealed a tonic form of inhibition in thalamus mediated by the α4β2δ extrasynaptic GABA_A receptors that may contribute to the regulation of thalamocortical rhythmic activity associated with sleep, wakefulness, vigilance and seizure disorders. In mouse thalamic relay cells DS2 enhanced the tonic current mediated by α4β2δ receptors with no effect on their synaptic GABA_A receptors. Similarly, in mouse cerebellar granule cells DS2 potentiated the tonic current mediated by α6βδ receptors. DS2 is the first selective positive allosteric modulator of δ-GABA_A receptors and such compounds potentially offer novel therapeutic opportunities as analgesics and in the treatment of sleep disorders. Furthermore, these drugs may be valuable in elucidating the physiological and pathophysiological roles played by these extrasynaptic GABA_A receptors.     

Combined discriminative stimulus effects of midazolam with other positive GABA<Subscript>A</Subscript> modulators and GABA<Subscript>A</Subscript> receptor agonists in rhesus monkeys

Rationale Interactions among compounds at GABA_A receptors might have important implications for the therapeutic and other effects of positive GABA_A modulators (e.g. benzodiazepines).Objectives This study examined whether a midazolam discriminative stimulus is modified by GABA_A agonists that act at sites other than benzodiazepine sites.Methods Rhesus monkeys discriminating midazolam (0.32 mg/kg SC) received direct-acting GABA_A receptor agonists (e.g. muscimol and gaboxadol), an indirect-acting GABA_A receptor agonist (progabide), ethanol, another benzodiazepine (triazolam), a barbiturate (pentobarbital), or a neuroactive steroid (pregnanolone) alone and in combination with midazolam.Results When administered alone, triazolam (0.1 mg/kg), pentobarbital (17.8 mg/kg) and pregnanolone (5.6 mg/kg) occasioned high levels of midazolam lever responding, ethanol (1–3 g/kg) occasioned intermediate levels of midazolam lever responding, and muscimol (0.32–1 mg/kg), gaboxadol (3.2–10 mg/kg) and progabide (10–32 mg/kg) occasioned low levels of midazolam lever responding. When combined with less-than-fully effective doses of midazolam, progabide (32 mg/kg) and ethanol (1 g/kg), but not muscimol and gaboxadol, enhanced the midazolam discriminative stimulus. Triazolam, pregnanolone and pentobarbital increased the potency of midazolam to occasion midazolam lever responding and the effects of these combinations were additive.Conclusions Direct-acting GABA_A receptor agonists are qualitatively different from positive GABA_A modulators in rhesus monkeys trained to discriminate midazolam. Although GABA_A receptor agonists and modulators can enhance the actions of benzodiazepines at the GABA_A receptor complex, the same drugs do not necessarily modify the discriminative stimulus effects of benzodiazepines. These results underscore the importance of the mechanism by which drugs alter Cl^– flux at the GABA_A receptor complex as a determinant not only of drug action but also of drug interaction and whether any particular drug enhances the behavioral effects of a benzodiazepine.     

Discriminative stimulus effects of L-838,417 (7-tert-butyl-3-(2,5-difluoro-phenyl)-6-(2-methyl-2H-[1,2,4]triazol-3-ylmethoxy)-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-b]pyridazine): Role of GABAA receptor subtypes

Previous reports suggest that γ-aminobutyric acid type A (GABA_A) receptors containing α1 subunits may play a pivotal role in mediating the discriminative stimulus effects of benzodiazepines (BZs). L-838,417 (7-tert-Butyl-3-(2,5-difluoro-phenyl)-6-(2-methyl-2H-[1,2,4]triazol-3-ylmethoxy)-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-b]pyridazine) is a GABA_A receptor modulator with intrinsic efficacy in vitro at α2, α3, and α5 subunit-containing GABA_A receptors, and little demonstrable intrinsic efficacy in vitro at α1 subunit-containing GABA_A receptors. The present study evaluated the discriminative stimulus effects of L-838,417 in order to determine the extent to which the α2, α3, and α5 subunit-containing GABA_A receptors contribute to the interoceptive effects of BZ-type drugs. Squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) were trained to discriminate L-838,417 (0.3 mg/kg, i.v.) from vehicle under a 5-response fixed-ratio schedule of food reinforcement. Under test conditions, L-838,417 administration resulted in dose-dependent increases in drug-lever responding that were antagonized by the BZ-site antagonist, flumazenil. Administration of non-selective BZs, compounds with 10-fold greater affinity for α1 subunit-containing GABA_A receptors compared to α2, α3, and α5 subunit-containing GABA_A receptors, barbiturates and ethanol (which modulate the GABA_A receptor via a non-BZ site), all resulted in a majority of responses on the L-838,417-paired lever (65-100% drug-lever responding). βCCT, an antagonist that binds with 20-fold greater affinity for α1 subunit-containing GABA_A receptors relative to α2, α3, and α5-containing GABA_A receptors, had no significant effect on the discriminative stimulus effects of L-838,417 or the L-838,417-like effects of diazepam or zolpidem. These data suggest that efficacy at α2, α3, and/or α5 subunit-containing GABA_A receptors likely are sufficient for engendering BZ-like discriminative stimulus effects.     

Etomidate, propofol and the neurosteroid THDOC increase the GABA efficacy of recombinant alpha4beta3delta and alpha4beta3 GABA A receptors expressed in HEK cells

General anesthetics, once thought to exert their effects through non-specific membrane effects, have highly specific ion channel targets that can silence neuronal populations in the nervous system, thereby causing unconsciousness and immobility, characteristic of general anesthesia. Inhibitory GABA_A receptors (GABA_ARs), particularly highly GABA-sensitive extrasynaptic receptor subtypes that give rise to sustained inhibitory currents, are uniquely sensitive to GABA_AR-active anesthetics. A prominent population of extrasynaptic GABA_ARs is made up of α4, β2 or β3, and δ subunits. Considering the demonstrated importance of GABA receptor β3 subunits for in vivo anesthetic effects of etomidate and propofol, we decided to investigate the effects of GABA anesthetics on “extrasynaptic” α4β3δ and also binary α4β3 receptors expressed in human embryonic kidney (HEK) cells. Consistent with previous work on similar receptor subtypes we show that maximal GABA currents through “extrasynaptic” α4β3δ receptors, receptors defined by sensitivity to EtOH (30 mM) and the β-carboline β-CCE (1 μM), are enhanced by the GABA_AR-active anesthetics etomidate, propofol, and the neurosteroid anesthetic THDOC. Furthermore, we show that receptors formed by α4β3 subunits alone also show high GABA sensitivity and that saturating GABA responses of α4β3 receptors are increased to the same extent by etomidate, propofol, and THDOC as are α4β3δ receptors. Therefore, both α4β3 and α4β3δ receptors show low GABA efficacy, and GABA is also a partial agonist on certain binary αβ receptor subtypes. Increasing GABA efficacy on α4/6β3δ and α4β3 receptors is likely to make an important contribution to the anesthetic effects of etomidate, propofol and the neurosteroid THDOC.     

3-Hydroxy-2'-methoxy-6-methylflavone: a potent anxiolytic with a unique selectivity profile at GABA(A) receptor subtypes

Genetic and pharmacological studies have demonstrated that α2- and α4-containing GABA_A receptors mediate the anxiolytic effects of a number of agents. Flavonoids are a class of ligands that act at GABA_A receptors and possess anxiolytic effects in vivo. Here we demonstrate that the synthetic flavonoid, 3-hydroxy-2′-methoxy-6-methylflavone (3-OH-2′MeO6MF) potentiates GABA-induced currents at recombinant α1/2β2, α1/2/4/6β1–3γ2L but not α3/5β1–3γ2L receptors expressed in Xenopus oocytes. The enhancement was evident at micromolar concentrations (EC₅₀ values between 38 and 106 μM) and occurred in a flumazenil-insensitive manner. 3-OH-2′MeO6MF displayed preference for β2/3- over β1-containing receptors with the highest efficacy observed at α2β2/3γ2L, displaying a 4–11-fold increase in efficacy over α2β1γ2L and α1/4/6-containing subtypes. In contrast, 3-OH-2′MeO6MF acted as a potent bicuculline-sensitive activator, devoid of potentiation effects at extrasynaptic α4β2/3δ receptors expressed in oocytes. The affinity of 3-OH-2′MeO6MF for α4β2/3δ receptors (EC₅₀ values between 1.4 and 2.5 μM) was 10-fold higher than at α4β1δ GABA_A receptors. 3-OH-2′MeO6MF acted as a full agonist at α4β2/3δ (105% of the maximal GABA response) but as a partial agonist at α4β1δ (61% of the maximum GABA response) receptors. In mice, 3-OH-2′MeO6MF (1–100 mg/kg i.p.) induced anxiolytic-like effects in two unconditioned models of anxiety: the elevated plus maze and light/dark paradigms. No sedative or myorelaxant effects were detected using holeboard, actimeter and horizontal wire tests and only weak barbiturate potentiating effects on the loss of righting reflex test. Taken together, these data suggest that 3-OH-2′MeO6MF is an anxiolytic without sedative and myorelaxant effects acting through positive allosteric modulation of the α2β2/3γ2L and direct activation of α4β2/3δ GABA_A receptor subtypes.     

3-Hydroxy-2′-methoxy-6-methylflavone: A potent anxiolytic with a unique selectivity profile at GABAA receptor subtypes

Genetic and pharmacological studies have demonstrated that α2- and α4-containing GABA_A receptors mediate the anxiolytic effects of a number of agents. Flavonoids are a class of ligands that act at GABA_A receptors and possess anxiolytic effects in vivo. Here we demonstrate that the synthetic flavonoid, 3-hydroxy-2′-methoxy-6-methylflavone (3-OH-2′MeO6MF) potentiates GABA-induced currents at recombinant α1/2β2, α1/2/4/6β1–3γ2L but not α3/5β1–3γ2L receptors expressed in Xenopus oocytes. The enhancement was evident at micromolar concentrations (EC₅₀ values between 38 and 106 μM) and occurred in a flumazenil-insensitive manner. 3-OH-2′MeO6MF displayed preference for β2/3- over β1-containing receptors with the highest efficacy observed at α2β2/3γ2L, displaying a 4–11-fold increase in efficacy over α2β1γ2L and α1/4/6-containing subtypes. In contrast, 3-OH-2′MeO6MF acted as a potent bicuculline-sensitive activator, devoid of potentiation effects at extrasynaptic α4β2/3δ receptors expressed in oocytes. The affinity of 3-OH-2′MeO6MF for α4β2/3δ receptors (EC₅₀ values between 1.4 and 2.5 μM) was 10-fold higher than at α4β1δ GABA_A receptors. 3-OH-2′MeO6MF acted as a full agonist at α4β2/3δ (105% of the maximal GABA response) but as a partial agonist at α4β1δ (61% of the maximum GABA response) receptors. In mice, 3-OH-2′MeO6MF (1–100 mg/kg i.p.) induced anxiolytic-like effects in two unconditioned models of anxiety: the elevated plus maze and light/dark paradigms. No sedative or myorelaxant effects were detected using holeboard, actimeter and horizontal wire tests and only weak barbiturate potentiating effects on the loss of righting reflex test. Taken together, these data suggest that 3-OH-2′MeO6MF is an anxiolytic without sedative and myorelaxant effects acting through positive allosteric modulation of the α2β2/3γ2L and direct activation of α4β2/3δ GABA_A receptor subtypes.     

α-Subunit selective modulators of GABAA receptor function as CNS therapeutics

γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the major inhibitory neurotransmitter within the CNS. Many drugs, including the benzodiazepines, exert their effects by modulating the GABA_A receptor complex, but side effects are common and reflect, in part, poor subunit selectivity. The subunits are arranged into heteropentamers and this produces a rich diversity of GABA_A receptor subtypes, which are potential targets for treating a variety of CNS disorders including epilepsy, anxiety and insomnia, as well as for ameliorating deficiencies arising from neurodegeneration, such as cognitive impairment. The identification of new ligands with improved subunit selectivity should reduce or abolish some of the side effects observed with current drugs, such as tolerance, dependence and withdrawal. This article focuses on new ligands that are reported to selectively recognise particular α-subunits of GABA_A receptors and may thereby offer improved treatments for CNS disorders. Only patents and literature since 1998 are necessarily included, although some earlier reports and reviews are also cited. Several publications and patent applications since 1998 disclose new compounds that modulate GABA_A receptor function without mentioning whether they have α-subunit selectivity; these compounds, like those known to interact with sites on other GABA_A subunits (particularly β), are not within the scope of this review.     

Benzodiazepines on trial: a research strategy for their rehabilitation

Ataxia, sedation, amnesia, ethanol and barbiturate potentiation, tolerance, dependence, and the potential for drug abuse plague the clinical use of anxiolytic benzodiazepines. Benzodiazepine and non-benzodiazepine ligands that are in current clinical use act as full allosteric modulators of GABA-gated Cl-channels, and on chronic administration trigger compensatory changes in the subunit expression of GABA_A receptors. In these putative abnormal receptors, full allosteric modulators have low intrinsic activity and potency, and tolerance and dependence ensue. In this review, Erminio Costa and Alessandro Guidotti discuss the development of partial allosteric modulators, such as imidazenil, which have high potency and low intrinsic activity at GABA-gated Cl- channels. Since in animals tolerant to full allosteric modulators imidazenil also fails to show cross-tolerance, it is an example of a new type of anxiolytic and anticonvulsant drug acting at GABA_A receptors via benzodiazepine recognition sites.     

Novel GABAB receptor positive modulators: a patent survey

Importance of the field: Positive allosteric modulators of GABA_B receptors may have a similar potential as positive modulators of GABA_A receptors, the benzodiazepines discovered in 1957. The discovery of positive allosteric modulators of GABA_B receptors at Novartis in Basel in 2000 opened the way to search for compounds, which activate GABA_B receptors without the drawbacks of full agonists, such as desensitization, tolerance, muscle-relaxant effects, hypothermia, and central and gastrointestinal side effects.

Areas covered in this review: Numerous animal experiments point out that several indications can be addressed with positive modulators of GABA_B receptors, such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, neuropathic and chronic pain and treatment of craving for drugs of abuse, such as alcohol, cocaine and nicotine. Peripherally acting compounds may be valuable drugs for the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease and irritable bowel syndrome.

What the reader will gain: An overview on 19 patents in this field, of the different scaffolds for positive modulators of GABA_B receptors and of the major players in the field.

Take home message: The search for subtype selective benzodiazepine receptor ligands has proved to be extremely difficult. Positive modulators of GABA_B receptors may provide novel anxiolytic drugs faster.     

Triazolam is more efficacious than diazepam in a broad spectrum of recombinant GABAA receptors

Benzodiazepine-induced modifications of GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid) activated Cl⁻ currents were studied in native GABA_A receptors expressed in neonatal rat brain cortical neurons in primary cultures and in recombinant GABA_A receptors expressed in transformed human embryonic kidney cells (293) after a transient transfection with cDNAs encoding for different molecular forms of α, β, and γ subunits of GABA_A receptors. The efficacy of triazolam in cortical neurons was higher than that of diazepam. In transfected cells, triazolam showed a greater efficacy as a positive modulator of GABA-elicited Cl⁻ currents in α1β1γ1, α1β1γ2, α1β1γ3, α6β1γ2 and α1β3γ2 receptors than diazepam, except in α3β1γ2 receptors where diazepam was more efficacious. When triazolam and diazepam were applied together to GABA_A receptors assembled by transfecting cDNAs encoding for α1β1γ1 subunits, the action of triazolam was curtailed in a manner related to the dose of diazepam. In recombinant receptors assembled with α1β1γ1 receptors, maximally active doses of triazolam were more efficacious than those of clonazepam, alpidem, zolpidem, diazepam or bretazenil.     

Benzodiazepine modulation of the rat GABAA receptor α4β3γ2L subtype expressed in Xenopus oocytes

The effects of benzodiazepines on GABA_A receptors are dependent largely on the particular α subunit isoform that is present in the receptor pentamer. The inclusion of either the α4 or α6 subunit is generally thought to render the receptor insensitive to classical benzodiazepines. We expressed the rat α4β3γ2L subtype in Xenopus oocytes and observed that both diazepam and flunitrazepam significantly potentiated GABA-gated currents. This potentiation occurred at nanomolar concentrations similar to those seen at the most abundant “diazepam-sensitive” receptor i.e., the α1β2γ2 subtype. In the α4β3γ2L receptor, the effects of diazepam and flunitrazepam were inhibited by nanomolar concentrations of the benzodiazepine site antagonists, Ro15-1788 and ZK93426. The presence of the β3 subunit appears to be important for this modulation since diazepam did not affect GABA responses mediated by recombinant α4β1γ2L or α4β2γ2L receptors. Interestingly, when the α4β3γ2L receptor was expressed in HEK293 cells, diazepam and flunitrazepam displaced the relatively non-selective benzodiazepine site ligand, [³H]Ro15-4513, only at high concentrations (>10 μM) demonstrating a lack of high affinity binding for these classical benzodiazepines. Functional studies of the cell-expressed receptors using whole cell recording techniques showed that neither diazepam nor flunitrazepam potentiated GABA-evoked currents although currents were enhanced by nanomolar concentrations of Ro15-4513. These results suggest that the observed benzodiazepine modulation of the α4β3γ2L subtype depends on the expression system used and may be specific for expression in Xenopus oocytes.     

Insights into functional pharmacology of α1 GABAA receptors: how much does partial activation at the benzodiazepine site matter?

Rationale

Synthesis of ligands inactive or with low activity at α₁ GABA_A receptors has become the key concept for development of novel, more tolerable benzodiazepine (BZ)-like drugs. WYS8, a remarkably (105 times) α₁-subtype selective partial positive modulator, may serve as a pharmacological tool for refining the role of α₁ GABA_A receptors in mediation of BZs’ effects.

Objectives

Here, the effects of WYS8 on GABA-induced currents and on diazepam-induced potentiation of recombinant BZ-sensitive GABA_A receptors were studied in more detail. In addition, the behavioral profile of WYS8 (0.2, 1, and 10 mg/kg i.p.), on its own and in combination with diazepam, was tested in the spontaneous locomotor activity, elevated plus maze, grip strength, rotarod, and pentylenetetrazole tests.

Results

WYS8, applied at an in vivo attainable concentration of 100 nM, reduced the stimulation of GABA currents by 1 μM diazepam by 57 % at α₁β₃γ₂, but not at α₂β₃γ₂, α₃β₃γ₂, or α₅β₃γ₂ GABA_A receptors. The administration of WYS8 alone induced negligible behavioral consequences. When combined with diazepam, WYS8 caused a reduction in sedation, muscle relaxation, and anticonvulsant activity, as compared with this BZ alone, whereas ataxia was preserved, and the anxiolytic effect of 2 mg/kg diazepam was unmasked.

Conclusions

Hence, a partial instead of full activation at α₁ GABA_A receptors did not necessarily result in the attenuation of the effects assumed to be mediated by activation of these receptors, or in the full preservation of the effects mediated by activation of other GABA_A receptors. Thus, the role of α₁ GABA_A receptors appears more complex than that proposed by genetic studies.     

Interaction of androsterone and progesterone with inhibitory ligand-gated ion channels: a patch clamp study

Gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor type A (GABA_A) receptor channels mediate fast inhibitory neurotransmission throughout the central nervous system while the expression of ionotropic glycine receptors is mainly restricted to the spinal cord and brain stem. Neuroactive steroids are well known as positive allosteric modulators of GABA_A receptor function. Furthermore, there have been hints for an interaction of neuroactive steroids with ionotropic glycine receptors. The aim of the study was to characterize the effect of androsterone and progesterone on α₁ and α₁β glycine receptor and α₁β₂γ₂ GABA_A receptor channels and to examine the molecular interactions between ligands and receptors. Electrophysiological recordings were performed on HEK 293 cells using the patch clamp technique in combination with an ultrafast perfusion system. A direct activation of inhibitory ionotropic receptors was observed for androsterone at GABA_A receptor channels. A coactivation of currents elicited by nonsaturating agonist concentrations was observed with androsterone and progesterone at glycine and GABA_A receptor channels. We could show that association of β subunits with α subunits affects the sensitivity of glycine receptors to androsterone. In contrast to previous reports in which recombinant glycine receptors were inhibited by progesterone, a potentiating effect was revealed by our experiments. At concentrations of 0.1 mM and higher, there were also hints to a channel block-like mechanism. In conclusion, different molecular mechanisms of interaction between neuroactive steroids and GABA as well as glycine receptors could be identified and quantitatively described. Our data clarify the role of steroid compounds in the modulation of inhibitory receptor channel function.     

The protective effect of M40401, a superoxide dismutase mimetic, on post-ischemic brain damage in Mongolian gerbils

Background

Amino acids in the β subunit contribute to the action of general anaesthetics on GABA_A receptors. We have now characterized the phenotypic effect of two β subunit mutations in the most abundant GABA_A receptor subtype, α1β2γ2.

Results

The β2(N265M) mutation in M2 decreased the modulatory actions of propofol, etomidate and enflurane, but not of alphaxalone, while the direct actions of propofol, etomidate and alphaxalone were impaired. The β2(M286W) mutation in M3 decreased the modulatory actions of propofol, etomidate and enflurane, but not of alphaxalone, whereas the direct action of propofol and etomidate, but not of alphaxalone, was impaired.

Conclusions

We found that the actions of general anaesthetics at α1β2(N265M)γ2 and α1β2(M286W)γ2 GABA_A receptors are similar to those previously observed at α2β3(N265M)γ2 and α2β3(M286W)γ2 GABA_A recpetors, respectively, with the notable exceptions that the direct action of propofol was decreased in α1β2(M286W)γ2 receptors but indistinguishable form wild type in α2β3(M286W)γ2 receptors and that the direct action of alphaxalone was decreased in α1β2(N265M)γ2 but not α2β3(N265M)γ2 receptors and indistinguishable form wild type in α1β2(M286W)γ2 receptors but increased in α2β3(M286W)γ2 receptors. Thus, selected phenotypic consequences of these two mutations are GABA_A receptor subtype-specific.     

Antihyperalgesic Effect of the GABAA Ligand Clobazam in a Neuropathic Pain Model in Mice: A Pharmacokinetic–Pharmacodynamic Study

Facilitation of spinal GABAergic inhibition with benzodiazepines (BZDs) reverses pain sensitization in animals; however, the use of BZDs in man is limited by their sedative effect. The antihyperalgesic effects of GABA_A agonists are mediated by GABA_A receptors containing α2 subunits, whereas sedation is linked to α1 subunit‐containing receptors. α2 and α3 selective GABA_A receptor modulators have been tested in animals but are not yet available for use in human beings. Clobazam is a 1,5‐BZD, which exhibits less cognitive side effects than other benzodiazepines. Here, we studied its antihyperalgesic effects in a mouse model of neuropathic pain. Clobazam showed a dose‐dependent antihyperalgesic effect in the chronic constriction injury (CCI) model of neuropathic pain, peaking at 1 hr after administration and lasting for 4 hr with no relevant sedation at a dose of 3 mg/kg. At higher doses, the antihyperalgesic effect was stronger, but sedation became significant. The blood and brain kinetics of clobazam were linear over the range of doses tested with a short half‐life of the parent compound and a ready penetration of the blood–brain barrier. Clobazam blood concentrations decreased rapidly, falling below the limit of detection at 120 min. after drug application. Its main metabolite, N‐desmethyl‐clobazam, showed more delayed and prolonged pharmacokinetics, partly explaining why antihyperalgesia persisted when clobazam was no longer detectable in the blood. Considering its therapeutic margin and its pharmacokinetic properties, clobazam would be a valuable compound to assess the role of the GABAergic pathway in pain transmission in human beings.