Benzodiazepines specifically modulate GABA-mediated postsynaptic inhibition in cultured mammalian neurones

An analysis of the in vivo interactions between chemical convulsants and anticonvulsants

The interactions between pentylenetetrazol (PTZ), picrotoxin (PIC), or bicuculline (BIC) and diazepam, phenobarbital, or valproate were subjected to Schild plot analysis. Log dose-probit response curves for minimal clonic seizures were determined for three chemical convulsants in the absence and in the presence of various concentrations of three anticonvulsants. The calculated median convulsant doses were subjected to Schild plot analysis and the pA2 values determined. A comparison of the pA2 values for the various convulsant/anticonvulsant combinations suggested the following conclusions: (i) the sequence of events leading to minimal clonic seizures evoked by PTZ or PIC involves a common receptor, (ii) BIC acts through a different receptor, and (iii) Schild plot analysis of the antagonism between convulsant and anticonvulsant is in agreement with their antagonism in vitro studies. Thus, Schild plot analysis can be useful in the evaluation of anticonvulsant activity in vivo and may offer some insight into the potential clinical usefulness of anticonvulsant substances.

Differential neurochemical effects of chronic exposure of cerebral cortical cell culture to valproic acid, diazepam, or ethosuximide

We have assessed the relative neurochemical effects of valproic acid, ethosuximide, and diazepam on dissociated cultures of mouse cerebral cortex. Cultures were exposed chronically (11 days) to each antiepileptic drug and assayed for number of neurons, total protein, tetanus toxin fixation, high-affinity uptake of gamma-aminobutyric acid and beta-alanine, choline acetyltransferase activity, and specific and clonazepam-displaceable benzodiazepine binding. Ethosuximide-exposed cultures did not evidence neuronal toxicity; exposure to valproic acid and diazepam resulted in modest neuronal toxicity. However, exposure to each of these drugs resulted in a marked reduction in benzodiazepine binding. This effect may relate to a common mechanism of action of drugs used to treat absence seizures.

Reduction of inhibition by a benzodiazepine antagonist, Ro15-1788, in the rat hippocampal slice

The effects of extracellular applications of benzodiazepine agonists and the benzodiazepine antagonist, Ro15-1788, were investigated on pyramidal neurons in the CA1 region of rat hippocampal slices. The benzodiazepine agonists, chlordiazepoxide and diazepam, enhanced gamma-aminobutyrate synaptic inhibition, as tested by extracellular recordings during a paired-pulse inhibition paradigm. In contrast, Ro15-1788 (0.1-1 microM) depressed paired-pulse inhibition in a dose-dependent manner that suggested agonist activity at higher (10-100 microM) concentrations. Intracellular recordings from CA1 neurons showed that Ro15-1788 reduced both orthodromically and antidromically evoked inhibitory postsynaptic potentials. The reduction of the inhibitory postsynaptic potential probably resulted from a postsynaptic effect on the conductance mechanism of the inhibitory postsynaptic potential, since there were no changes in resting input resistance, the inhibitory postsynaptic reversal potential or the frequency of spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic potentials. These data suggest that in the hippocampal slice preparation either (1) an endogenous benzodiazepine agonist exists that can be displaced by Ro15-1788 or (2) Ro15-1788 has inverse agonist activity.

Benzodiazepine receptor photoaffinity labeling: correlation of function with binding

Exhaustive photoaffinity coupling of flunitrazepam to living spinal cord neurons reduced the capacity of benzodiazepines to potentiate the electrophysiologically measured GABA response. In qualitative agreement with reversible binding data the dose-response curve for enhancement of the GABA response by benzodiazepines was shifted to the right, indicating that the remaining reversible benzodiazepine binding sites have lower affinity for benzodiazepines. Photoaffinity labeling did not reduce inhibition of the GABA response by beta-carbolines and there was only a small decrease in beta-carboline binding. In both control and photoaffinity-labeled cultures, the inhibitory effect of beta-carbolines on the GABA response was reversed in the presence of excess benzodiazepine. The results indicate that the effects of photoaffinity labeling are confined to the BZD recognition site, and that coupling between benzodiazepine receptors and GABA receptors remains intact.

Co-localization of GABA receptors and benzodiazepine receptors in the brain shown by monoclonal antibodies

The most abundant inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), exerts its main effects via a GABAA receptor that gates a chloride channel in the subsynaptic membrane. These receptors can contain a modulatory unit, the benzodiazepine receptor, through which ligands of different chemical classes can increase or decrease GABAA receptor function. We have now visualized a GABAA receptor in mammalian brain using monoclonal antibodies. The protein complex recognized by the antibodies contained high- and low-affinity binding sites for GABA as well as binding sites for benzodiazepines, indicative of a GABAA receptor functionally associated with benzodiazepine receptors. As the pattern of brain immunoreactivity corresponds to the autoradiographical distribution of benzodiazepine binding sites, most benzodiazepine receptors seem to be part of GABAA receptors. Two constituent proteins were identified immunologically. Because the monoclonal antibodies cross-react with human brain, they provide a means for elucidating those CNS disorders which may be linked to a dysfunction of a GABAA receptor.

GABA-mimetic activity and effects on diazepam binding of aminosulphonic acids structurally related to piperidine-4-sulphonic acid

The relationship between structure, in vivo activity, and in vitro activity of some analogues of the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) agonist piperidine-4-sulphonic acid (P4S) was studied. The syntheses of 1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine-4-sulphonic acid (DH-P4S) and (RS)-pyrrolidin-3-yl-methanesulphonamide (PMSA-amide) are described. Like P4S, its unsaturated analogue DH-P4S and the five-ring isomer (RS)-pyrrolidin-3-yl-methanesulphonic acid (PMSA) were bicuculline methochloride (BMC)-sensitive inhibitors of the firing of neurones in the cat spinal cord. Whereas isonipecotic acid was less potent than its unsaturated analogue isoguvacine as a GABA-mimetic and as an inhibitor of GABA binding, the opposite relative potencies of P4S and DH-P4S were observed, P4S being proportionally more potent than DH-P4S. In contrast with P4S and DH-P4S, PMSA, which is an analogue of the potent GABA uptake inhibitor and BMC-sensitive GABA-mimetic homo-beta-proline, was a relatively weak inhibitor of GABA uptake in vitro. PMSA-amide was more than two orders of magnitude weaker than PMSA as an inhibitor of GABA binding and did not significantly affect GABA uptake in vitro. The effects of 3-aminopropanesulphonic acid (3-APS), PMSA, P4S, and DH-P4S on the binding of [3H]diazepam in vitro at 30 degrees C, in the presence or absence of chloride ions, were studied and compared with those of the structurally related amino acids GABA, homo-beta-proline, isonipecotic acid, and isoguvacine. Under these conditions the aminosulphonic acids were weaker than the respective amino acids in enhancing [3H]diazepam binding, the difference being more pronounced in the absence of chloride.

Benzodiazepines both enhance gamma-aminobutyrate responses and decrease calcium action potentials in guinea-pig myenteric neurones

The effect of two benzodiazepines, midazolam and diazepam, was studied in guinea-pig myenteric neurones, using intracellular recording techniques. Both these benzodiazepines (100-300 pM) potentiated the rapidly desensitizing, bicuculline-sensitive depolarization, induced by alpha-aminobutyrate ionophoresis. Concentrations of midazolam and diazepam higher than 100 nM depressed the gamma-aminobutyrate-induced depolarization. The potentiating effect of the benzodiazepines was reversibly abolished by Ro 15-1788 (1-100 nM) and by pentylenetetrazol (100 microM). A second effect of midazolam and diazepam (100-300 pM) was a reversible depression of the amplitude and duration of the directly evoked action potential in 29% of neurones, without affecting membrane potential or conductance. The effect was very marked when electrodes were filled with CsCl, and was also seen in the presence of tetrodotoxin. In some but not all of these neurones, the amplitude and duration of the action potentials was reduced also by gamma-aminobutyrate (1-10 microM). Ro 15-1788 and pentylenetetrazol reversibly abolished the effect of benzodiazepines on the action potential, but not that of gamma-aminobutyrate. Thus, benzodiazepines have two effects on myenteric neurones. The first is an enhancement of the gamma-aminobutyrate response (activation of Cl conductance); the second is a depression of the calcium action potential, which appears to be independent of gamma-aminobutyrate.

Effects of guanyl nucleotides on [3H]flunitrazepam binding to rat hippocampal synaptic membranes: equilibrium binding and dissociation kinetics

The effects of guanyl nucleotides on the binding of [3H]flunitrazepam to rat hippocampal synaptic membranes were studied. In equilibrium binding studies, gamma-amino-n-butyric acid (GABA) increased and GTP decreased the binding affinity of [3H]flunitrazepam; GTP also caused a decrease in binding capacity. The effect, however, is variable. In studies of the dissociation kinetics of [3H]flunitrazepam using diazepam and the antagonist Ro 15-1788 as the displacers, there was evidence of two dissociation rate constants. GTP increased both the fast- and slow-dissociation rate constants and increased the ratio of the slow-dissociation binding state. The effect of GTP was mimicked by its nonhydrolyzable analogue 5'-guanylylimidodiphosphate but not by ATP and occurred when diazepam, but not when Ro 15-1788, was used as the displacer. GABA antagonized the effect of GTP on the dissociation of [3H]flunitrazepam. The nature of the benzodiazepine receptor, its actions, and the possible role of cyclic AMP as a second messenger are discussed.

Gabaergic mechanisms and anxiety: an overview and a new neurophysiological model

GABA is one of the principal inhibitory neurotransmitters in the mammalian brain and an ever increasing wealth of information suggests that GABAergic mechanisms have a special role in the neurophysiology of anxiety. All of the most commonly used antianxiety drugs (the benzodiazepines, the barbiturates, ethanol) selectively enhance only GABA-mediated synaptic transmission. Furthermore, the relative affinities of pharmacologically active benzodiazepines for the benzodiazepine receptor correlate well with their ability to antagonize GABA-modulin (the endogenous inhibitor of GABA receptors) in vitro, as well as with their ability to potentiate GABA-mediated electrically evoked cortical inhibition in vivo. Finally, it is of interest for the neurophysiology of anxiety that repetitive stimulation of the recurrent inhibitory GABAergic pathway in the rat hippocampus leads to a remarkable reduction of the effectiveness of GABA; this elimination of GABAergic "inhibition" is counteracted by antianxiety drugs. On the basis of the above a neurophysiological model of anxiety is proposed.

Diazepam and its anomalous p-chloro-derivative Ro 5-4864: comparative effects on mouse neurons in cell culture

The actions of diazepam and its p-chloro-derivative Ro 5-4864 were compared on mouse spinal cord and dorsal root ganglion neurons in cell culture. Diazepam enhanced but Ro 5-4864 reduced iontophoretic GABA responses in a concentration-dependent manner. Both diazepam and Ro 5-4864 limited sustained, high frequency repetitive firing of spinal cord neurons but diazepam was more potent. Ro 5-4864 was, however, more potent than diazepam in inhibiting spontaneous neuronal activity of spinal cord neurons and reducing the duration of calcium-dependent action potentials of dorsal root ganglion neurons. The differing actions of diazepam and Ro 5-4864 may account for the contrasting pharmacological spectra of the two benzodiazepines.

Benzodiazepine receptor ligand actions on GABA responses. Benzodiazepines, CL 218872, zopiclone

The effects on GABA (4-aminobutyric acid) responses of several benzodiazepine and nonbenzodiazepine benzodiazepine receptor ligands were examined using mouse spinal cord neurons in dissociated cell culture. Diazepam, clonazepam and nitrazepam enhanced GABA responses potently at low nanomolar concentrations. Diazepam and clonazepam were most potent with significant enhancement at 1 nM and peak enhancement of 80.7 and 50.2% at 10 nM respectively. Nitrazepam was least potent with no significant enhancement at 1 nM and enhancement of only 20.7% at 10 nM. The benzodiazepine antagonist, Ro 15-1788, blocked enhancement by diazepam but also weakly enhanced GABA responses at low micromolar concentrations, suggesting partial agonist activity. The convulsant benzodiazepine, Ro 5-4864, did not enhance GABA responses at any concentration tested but antagonized GABA responses at 1 microM and above. Diazepam shifted GABA dose-response curves to the left by decreasing the apparent KD but without altering the apparent Vmax (Lineweaver-Burk analysis). Two nonbenzodiazepine anxiolytic/anticonvulsants, CL 218872 and zopiclone, were weak enhancers of GABA responses at high nanomolar concentrations. These results with benzodiazepines, CL 218872 and zopiclone are consistent with their anxiolytic and anticonvulsant profile in vivo and with studies of their effects upon low affinity GABA binding in vitro.

Properties of [3H]diazepam binding sites on cultured murine glia and neurons

[3H]Diazepam binding was assayed in situ on living cultures of fetal mouse cerebral cortex or glia in an attempt to further characterize the high and low affinity binding sites. Mixed neuronal-glial cultures were found to have a high (Kd approximately equal to 10 nM) as well as a low (Kd approximately equal to 240 nM) affinity binding site. Glial cultures also had a similarly high affinity site (Kd 13 nM). In both types of cultures, the high affinity site was Ro 5-4864 sensitive and clonazepam resistant. Since Ro 5-4864 has particular affinity for non-neuronal elements and clonazepam for neuronal elements, the data suggest that the high affinity binding site may be localized to glial elements and the low affinity site primarily neuronal.

Diazepam enhances the action but not the binding of the GABA analog, THIP

GABA (4-aminobutyric acid) and its bicyclic analog THIP (4,5,6,7-tetrahydroisoxazolo-[4,5-c]-pyridin-3-ol) produced membrane hyperpolarization and increased chloride ion conductance of mouse spinal cord neurons in cell culture. Above 1 nM diazepam enhanced the actions of both GABA and THIP with similar potency and efficacy. Diazepam has been shown to enhance the binding of [3H]GABA to rat brain membranes over similar concentration ranges, with the EC50 values for enhancement of [3H]GABA binding and increase in membrane conductance being similar. In contrast, binding of [3H]THIP has been shown to be unaltered by diazepam under a variety of conditions. The possible reasons for such a discrepancy between these electrophysiological and neurochemical results with THIP are discussed.

Glutamate-containing dipeptides enhance specific binding at glutamate receptors and inhibit specific binding at kainate receptors in rat brain

The dipeptide, L-phenylalanyl-L-glutamate (PG), augments the specific binding of the excitatory amino acid receptor antagonist, [3H]2-amino-7-phosphonoheptanoic acid (APH), to rat forebrain membranes by 5-fold at 100 microM with an EC50 of 4.9 microM. The increase in the specific binding of [3H]AHP induced by PG results exclusively from an increase in Bmax. In contrast, PG inhibits the specific binding of [3H]kainic acid to forebrain membranes with a Ki of 6.8 microM. Of several related peptides examined, active ones affected the two receptor sites in a reciprocal fashion. The results suggest an allosteric interaction between [3H]APH and kainate receptors modulated by glutamate-containing peptides.

Benzodiazepine Ro 15-1788: electrophysiological evidence for partial agonist activity

The effects of diazepam and Ro 15-1788 were assessed upon responses of mouse spinal cord (SC) neurons in cell culture to the amino acid neurotransmitters 4-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and S-glutamic acid. Diazepam (100 nM) enhanced GABA responses by 65 +/- 3% (113 cells), while Ro 15-1788 (100 nM) failed to alter GABA responses but reduced their enhancement by diazepam. Higher Ro 15-1788 concentrations (1 microM or 10 microM) enhanced GABA responses to a moderate extent, while blocking further enhancement of GABA by diazepam. Neither diazepam nor Ro 15-1788 affected glutamate responses or resting membrane potential or conductance of spinal cord neurons. These results provide electrophysiological support for partial agonist, rather than pure antagonist, activity of Ro 15-1788.

GABAergic synapses. Supramolecular organization and biochemical regulation

Extraneurally released gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) interacts with specific recognition sites associated with proteins located in postsynaptic neuronal membranes that function as chloride (Cl-)ionophores. As a result of the interaction between GABA and the recognition sites, Cl- ionophores are opened causing an influx or an efflux of Cl-, depending on the values of the Cl- equilibrium potential and of the membrane potential. Hyperpolarization or depolarization will result from inward or outward Cl- fluxes, respectively. Independently of the change in conductivity elicited by GABA, this amino acid transmitter will reduce the effectiveness of the sodium ion (Na+) excitatory potential. In attempts to elucidate the molecular mechanism, whereby benzodiazepines facilitate the action of GABA on membrane conductance without changing the activity of Cl- or other ionophore, a basic protein (GABA-modulin, GM) has been isolated from rat brain which is similar in structure to the small molecular weight myelin basic protein, found in rodent brain. While GABA-modulin is located in synaptosomes, the small molecular weight myelin basic protein is located in the myelin fraction: more important, GABA-modulin inhibited the high affinity binding of GABA to crude synaptic membranes while the basic myelin protein did not. Also, amino acid composition and molecular weight differentiate the two proteins. The GABA-modulin can be phosphorylated with different stoichiometry by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase (4 mol PO4(-3)) or Ca2+-dependent protein kinase (1 mol PO4(-3)). Only cyclic AMP-dependent phosphorylation inhibited the action of GABA-modulin on GABA binding.

Multiple embryonic benzodiazepine binding sites: evidence for functionality

We have found high-affinity binding (site-A) and low-affinity binding (site-B) of benzodiazepines to membrane homogenates of embryonic chick brain and spinal cord. A new technique was developed to permit the determination of complete electrophysiological dose-response curves on single neurons in cell culture, eliminating cell-to-cell variability as a problem that complicates the interpretation of pooled data. The electrophysiological potencies and binding affinities of a series of benzodiazepines correlate well for site-A but not for site-B or the micromolar site reported in adult rat brain. Site-A and the electrophysiological response are sensitive to photo-affinity blockade with flunitrazepam (FNZM) by about 75% while site-B is resistant to blockade. The FNZM-photolinked benzodiazepine receptor/GABA receptor complex is not chronically potentiated and thus exists in an 'unpotentiated' state. These experiments suggest that site-A in embryonic CNS membranes corresponds to a functional benzodiazepine receptor/GABA receptor complex in spinal cord cell cultures.

Diazepam, pentobarbital and D-etomidate produced increases in bicuculline seizure threshold; selective antagonism by RO15-1788, picrotoxin and (+/-)-DMBB

The seizure threshold for different seizure components was measured after slow intravenous infusion of bicuculline in the rat. Clear differences were seen in the seizure threshold for tremor (TRE) and clonic-forepaw (CLOF) as compared to clonic-hindpaw (CLOH) and tonic-forepaw (TONF). Seizure threshold was measured after treatment with different doses of diazepam, pentobarbital, D-etomidate, picrotoxin, RO15-1788 and (+/-)-5-(1,3,-dimethylbutyl)-5-barbituric acid (DMBB). Direct and indirect antagonism between the agonists and antagonists was examined. The interactions between the drugs for TRE and CLOF resemble those described in in vitro receptor-binding assays using the GABA-benzodiazepine-chloride ionophore complex (GBCI). The interactions for CLOH and TONF do not show this resemblance, suggesting less involvement of GABA in these phenomena. Diazepam was selectively antagonized by RO15-1788. D-Etomidate and pentobarbital were directly antagonized by DMBB, suggesting shared activity at the barbiturate site. No evidence was found for an interaction between compounds acting at different sites within the GBCI.

Two distinct interactions of barbiturates and chlormethiazole with the GABAA receptor complex in rat cuneate nucleus in vitro

Some pharmacological properties of the GABAA receptor complex in the rat cuneate nucleus slice have been assessed from depolarization responses to the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) analogue muscimol and antagonism of the responses by bicuculline and picrotoxin. Responses to muscimol were potentiated by the following drugs, in descending order of potency with regard to the concentrations required in the Krebs medium: (+/-)-5-(1,3-dimethylbutyl)-5-ethylbarbituric acid [+/-)-DMBB) = (+/-)-quinalbarbitone = (+/-)-pentobarbitone greater than (+/-)-methyl-phenobarbitone = (-)-methylphenobarbitone greater than butobarbitone = chlormethiazole greater than phenobarbitone greater than barbitone = (+)-methylphenobarbitone. Primidone and phenylethylmalonamide were inactive. Calculation of the concentrations likely to be present in membrane lipids for equal potentiations of muscimol revealed little difference between quinalbarbitone, pentobarbitone, phenobarbitone and barbitone. The effect of picrotoxin as a muscimol antagonist was selectively reduced only by DMBB, chlormethiazole, phenobarbitone and (-)-methylphenobarbitone in concentrations that caused only a modest potentiation of muscimol. It is suggested that a specific site of action in the GABAA receptor complex is involved in the reduction of picrotoxin effect and that this may be relevant to the anticonvulsant properties of chlormethiazole, phenobarbitone and (-)-methylphenobarbitone. The potentiation of muscimol by chlormethiazole and the barbiturates in general involves a distinctly different site that is less selective and this may underlie the hypnotic properties of these drugs.

Separation of clonazepam-induced head twitches and muscle relaxation in mice

Stereotyped head twitches in mice were induced by clonazepam. The number of head twitches produced was directly related to the clonazepam dose. In addition to head twitches, clonazepam produced dose-related muscle relaxation. Methysergide antagonized the action of clonazepam on head twitches. However, methysergide failed to block the muscle relaxant action. In contrast to methysergide, the benzodiazepine receptor antagonists CGS 8216 and Ro 15-1788 blocked the muscle relaxant effects of clonazepam. Neither CGS 8216 nor Ro 15-1788 blocked the clonazepam-induced head twitches. These data suggest that the muscle relaxant effects of clonazepam are mediated by benzodiazepine/GABA receptor systems that can be blocked by CGS 8216 and Ro 15-1788. On the other hand, it is proposed that the benzodiazepine-induced head twitch effect is mediated by a benzodiazepine/serotonin 2 receptor system.

Potentiating action of midazolam on GABA-mediated responses and its antagonism by Ro 14-7437 in the frog spinal cord

The effect of midazolam, a new water-soluble benzodiazepine, on an in vitro slice preparation of the frog spinal cord was investigated using electrophysiological recordings. Midazolam potently (ED50 = 1 nM) enhanced the depolarizing action of GABA on primary afferent fibres while leaving the depolarizing effect of glutamate, glycine or high K+ solutions unchanged. Concentrations of midazolam higher than 100 nM had an antagonistic effect on GABA responses. Ro 14-7437 was a powerful and selective antagonist of the midazolam potentiation without affecting control responses to GABA, glutamate or high K+. The antagonism of GABA responses induced by high doses of midazolam was not sensitive to Ro 14-7437. Our data suggest that midazolam is a very potent and selective modulator of GABA responses: this finding illustrates that electrophysiological techniques can detect specific effects of very low concentrations of benzodiazepines on a CNS slice preparation with well preserved architectural organization.

Low-dose benzodiazepine neuronal inhibition: enhanced Ca2+-mediated K+-conductance

The water-soluble inhibitory benzodiazepine, midazolam, was applied in low nanomolar concentrations to CA1 hippocampal neurons in vitro, recorded intracellularly. The drug caused a long-lasting hyperpolarization and moderate conductance increase, which persisted with TTX-induced synaptic blockade or with intracellular injection of Cl- ions, but not in zero Ca2+ perfusate. Calcium spikes elicited in the presence of TTX were enhanced by midazolam. It was concluded that these low nanomolar concentrations, which did not enhance GABA actions, inhibited by augmenting Ca2+ mediated K+-conductance.

Diazepam increases GABA mediated inhibition in the olfactory cortex slice

The effect of diazepam on inhibition has been examined using an in vitro preparation of the guinea-pig olfactory cortex. Diazepam (0.03-30 mumol/l) doubled the intensity and duration of the recurrent inhibitory conductance. Diazepam had no effect on single evoked excitatory post-synaptic potential (e.p.s.p.) nor any effects on the action potential or membrane electrical constants. Diazepam (0.003-100 mumol/l) also reduced the multisynaptic e.p.s.p. generated through a recurrent pathway directed at the soma when elicited during the time-course of the inhibitory conductance. Diazepam had a comparitively small effect on the monosynaptic e.p.s.p. generated on the distal dendrite. Pentobarbitone had a similar though more intense effect over a narrow concentration range (10-200 mumol/l). The inhibitory coductance is thought to be GABA-mediated. Diazepam doubled the potency of the GABA analogue, muscimol, when applied via the bathing solution, whereas a modest 50 mumol/l pentobarbitone increased muscimol potency by about four-fold. The mild but selective effect of diazepam contrasts with the more intense and general effects of pentobarbitone and supports the idea that these drugs act through different mechanisms at the GABA receptor/channel complex.

The effect of ethanol on GABAergic transmission

One of the many actions of ethanol involves the GABAergic system. The interaction of ethanol with GABAergic neurons is a complex one involving both presynaptic and postsynaptic sites. Through a presumed fluidization of membranes after a single dose of ethanol, the available in vitro evidence suggests that ethanol disrupts the normal functioning of the GABA-benzodiazepine-chloride ionophore complex in a complicated manner involving a sequential activation of different active sites leading to the facilitation of GABA transmission. This finding has been supported in vivo using electrophysiological techniques. Presynaptic GABAergic neurons may experience a reduced activity, especially at low doses of ethanol. After chronic ethanol treatment, GABAergic transmission may be reduced, especially during an ethanol withdrawal syndrome. Also, other changes in the GABA-benzodiazepine-chloride ionophore complex suggest GABA transmission is suppressed postsynaptically. Drugs which enhance the actions of GABA may be suitable inhibitors of the ethanol withdrawal syndrome. In particular a new class of drugs, the triazolopyridazines, may be promising compounds for treatment of withdrawal with a more specific mode of action and fewer side effects.

Biochemical and electrophysiological characteristics of mammalian GABA receptors

The concept that GABA is a neurotransmitter in the mammalian CNS is supported by both electrophysiological and biochemical data. Whereas the electrophysiological studies are essential for demonstrating a specific functional response to GABA, the biochemical approach is useful for characterizing the molecular properties of this site. As a result of these studies the concept of the GABA receptor has progressed from a simple model of a single recognition site associated with a chloride channel to a more complex structure having a variety of interacting components. Thus, both electrophysiological and biochemical data support the existence of at least two pharmacologically distinct types of GABA receptors, based on the sensitivity to bicuculline. Also, anatomically, there appear to be two different types of receptors, those located postsynaptically on the soma or dendrites of a neighboring cell and those found presynaptically on GABAergic and other neurotransmitter terminals. From biochemical studies it appears that the GABA receptor may be composed of at least three distinct interacting components. One of these, the recognition site, may exist in two conformations, with one preferring agonists and the other having a higher affinity for antagonists. Ion channels may be considered a second component, with some of these regulating the passage of chloride ion, whereas others may be associated with calcium transport. The third major element of GABA receptors appears to be a benzodiazepine recognition site, although only a certain population of GABA receptors may be endowed with this property. In addition to these, the GABA receptor complex appears to contain substances that modulate the recognition site by influencing the availability of higher affinity binding proteins. It would appear therefore that changes affecting any one of these constituents can influence the characteristics of the others. While increasing the complexity of the system, this arrangement makes for a more sensitive and adaptable receptor mechanism. Thus the GABA receptor can be envisioned as a supramolecular complex of interacting sites, all of which contribute to the functional expression of receptor activation. Because of this complexity, GABA receptors can theoretically be modified in a variety of ways by drug treatment or disease. Accordingly, it may be possible to develop selective agonists and antagonists that may act at one of the basic components, as well as agents that may alter the receptor modulators. Conversely, a disorder of any of these entities may result in an alteration of GABA receptor function, which in turn could contribute to the symptoms of a variety of neuropsychiatric disorders.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Differential effects of diazepam upon vestibulo- and visual-oculomotor responses in the rabbit

The effects of intravenously administered diazepam (0.6 mg/kg) on vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR), optokinetic nystagmus (OKN), optovestibular reflex (OVR) and their after-nystagmus were examined in rabbits. These reflexes were evoked by velocity step of 20 degrees/sec of chair or drum rotation. Slow phase eye velocity (SPEV) of OVR shows algebraic summation of those of VOR and OKN. Although SPEVs of VOR, OKN and OVR significantly decreased at 10 and 30 min after diazepam injection (p less than 0.05, t-test), OKN shows most distinctive reduction. SPEV reduction of OVR after diazepam administration was also equal to the algebraic summation of VOR and OKN reductions.

Effect of 1-methyl cyclohexane carboxylic acid on electrical activity of Purkinje cells in the rat: evidence for a potentiation of intracerebellar inhibition

The effect of an anticonvulsant compound (Simiand, Ferrandes, Lacolle and Eymard, 1979), 1-methyl cyclohexane carboxylic acid (CCA), upon the electrical activity of Purkinje cells (PCs) was studied in the cerebellar cortex of the rat in vivo. Cyclohexane carboxylic acid (200-400 mg/kg i.v.) decreased the spontaneous simple spike (SS) activity of the Purkinje cells tested without modifying the complex spike (CS) frequency. Two effects of CCA upon intracortical inhibition were observed: (1) the decrease in firing rate that followed surface stimulation of the parallel fibres (LOC stimulation) was enhanced after injection of CCA; (2) the depression of the antidromic field potential of Purkinje cells by a conditioning stimulation was also enhanced after injection of CCA. This latter effect was suppressed in a reversible manner by injection of bicuculline. These results strongly suggest that the effect of CCA upon electrical activity of Purkinje cells is related to an enhancement of the inhibition exerted on Purkinje cells by GABAergic, cerebellar interneurones. The possible mechanisms of action of CCA are discussed.

Multiple actions of picomolar concentrations of flurazepam on the excitability of cultured mouse spinal neurons

Intracellular recordings from mouse spinal neurons grown dissociated in tissue culture were used to study the effects of the water soluble benzodiazepine, flurazepam, upon neuronal excitability. Low concentrations of this drug (1 pM to 10 nM) depressed excitability in three distinctly different ways: (1) by directly increasing Cl- conductance, (2) by potentiating responses to GABA, and (3) by elevating spike threshold and/or depressing repetitive spike firing. Bathing neurons with picrotoxin induced 'convulsive-like' activity which was attenuated by flurazepam. The direct effects of flurazepam on the passive and active properties of membrane excitability were insensitive to picrotoxin. However, when the dose of flurazepam was increased to 10 nM or greater this drug lost its effectiveness. These results show that flurazepam is a potent drug with multiple sites of action all of which are likely to contribute to its pharmacological actions in vivo.

Differential effects of GABA on peripheral and central type benzodiazepine binding sites in brain

The binding of the clinically inactive benzodiazepine [3H]RO-5-4864 to brain membranes was investigated. The peripheral type benzodiazepine binding site was demonstrated in brain with an apparent Kd of 1.6 nM and a Bmax of 20 fmol/mg protein. Monophasic Scatchard plots indicate a homogenous population of a high affinity sites. The major inhibitory transmitter GABA, has no effect on [3H]RO-5-4864 binding to extensively wash brain membranes. The peripheral type benzodiazepine binding site found in brain is therefore not modulated GABA.

Diazepam enhances cerebellar inhibition on vestibular neurons

The spontaneous neuronal activity of the lateral (LVN) and the superior (SVN) vestibular nuclei was analysed before and after the intravenous (i.v.) injection of diazepam in encéphale isolé', decerebrate and cerebellectomized rabbits. The inhibition of vestibular neurons was dependent on the integrity of cerebellar connections with LVN, while these links were partially responsible for the diazepam inhibition on SVN. A role of spinal and telediemesencephalic structures was not recognized. Considering that diazepam does not increase the activity of Purkinje cells, the drug effect ought to be exerted at the level of the Purkinje cell junctions with the cerebellar nuclei and with the vestibular neurons. GABA being the neurotransmitter released by Purkinje cells evidence is provided for a diazepam potentiation of the GABAergic mechanism at the level of vestibular system.

Diazepam enhancement of low affinity GABA binding to rat brain membranes

Diazepam (3 nM-3 microM) enhanced GABA binding to well-washed synaptosomal membranes in a concentration-dependent manner. Half maximal enhancement occurred at 20 nM diazepam. Kinetic analysis by non-linear Scatchard analysis revealed that the primary action of diazepam was to increase the affinity of GABA binding to a low affinity site. These results support electrophysiological and other biochemical observations of benzodiazepine-GABA interactions.

Flurazepam effects on rat cerebellar Purkinje cells

1. Cerebellar Purkinje cell activity was recorded in urethane anaesthetized rats. 2. Flurazepam, infused intravenously in divided doses totalling 4 mg/kg, decreased simple spike activity, increased complex spike activity and prolonged local surface inhibition. 3. Iontophoretically applied flurazepam enhanced the effect of GABA and elicited a bursting pattern of discharge when released using larger currents for ejection.

3-mercaptopropionic acid inhibits GABA release from rat brain slices in vitro

3-Mercaptopropionic acid (3MP) (1 mM) inhibited the potassium-evoked release of endogenous GABA from slices of rat hippocampus and cerebral cortex in vitro. This did not appear to be due to an inhibition of GABA biosynthesis, since 3MP failed to affect the basal rate of GABA release or to accelerate the decline in the GABA content of tissue slices during prolonged exposure to 3MP (up to 120 min). 3MP, furthermore, inhibited the potassium-evoked release of [3H]GABA from preloaded brain slices, suggesting a direct inhibitory effect on GABA release. The threshold concentration was approximately 0.1 mM. 3MP at 1 mM failed to inhibit the potassium-evoked release of [3H]5-hydroxytryptamine, [3H]noradrenaline or somatostatin under similar conditions. The ability of 3MP to inhibit GABA release may contribute to the convulsant properties of this substance in vivo.

The effects of chlordiazepoxide on synaptic transmission and amino acid neurotransmitter release in slices of rat olfactory cortex

The rat olfactory cortex slice has been used to investigate the effects of chlordiazepoxide on evoked field potentials and the release of endogenous amino acid neurotransmitters (aspartate, glutamate, GABA and possibly taurine) which accompany electrical stimulation of the lateral olfactory tract. When single, low frequency stimuli were employed, chlordiazepoxide (2 microM-1 mM) depressed the amplitude of the field potential correlate of the depolarizing actions of the lateral olfactory tract excitatory transmitter (aspartate?) although aspartate release was unaffected. The field potential correlate of GABA-mediated presynaptic inhibition (late N-wave) was also depressed in amplitude but low drug concentrations (between approximately 2 and 50 microM) increased its peak duration . Effects of chlordiazepoxide on evoked inhibition were analyzed by giving paired stimuli such that the second stimulus occurred during the field potentials evoked by the first stimulus. Chlordiazepoxide (1-20 microM) increased the depression in amplitudes of the presynaptic massed action potential and late N-wave evoked by the second of a pair of stimuli compared with those evoked by the first stimulus suggesting that presynaptic inhibition was potentiated. These effects of chlordiazepoxide were accompanied by a significant reduction in aspartate release from the lateral olfactory tract terminals. Moreover, the drug effects on presynaptic inhibition and aspartate release were antagonized by picrotoxin (5 microM). On the other hand, chlordiazepoxide (1-50 microM) had no significant effect on postsynaptic inhibition. The results are discussed in terms of both the sites (presynaptic or postsynaptic) and mechanisms of action of chlordiazepoxide.

Diazepam and (--)-pentobarbital: fluctuation analysis reveals different mechanisms for potentiation of gamma-aminobutyric acid responses in cultured central neurons

Diazepam and (--)-pentobarbital each potentiate the increase in chloride ion conductance produced by gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) i voltage-clamped mouse spinal neurons grown in culture. Fluctuation analysis was used to compare the properties of elementary ion-channel events underlying the chloride conductance produced by GABA alone and during potentiation by the two drugs. Neither drug altered the conductance of an open ion channel, but both drugs affected the kinetics of channel activity. Diazepam increased the frequency of channel openings and either did not affect or slightly increased the average open-channel lifetime, whereas (--)-pentobarbital decreased the frequency of channel openings and increased average open-channel lifetime. These changes in the kinetics of GABA-activated ion channels can quantitatively account for the potentiation of GABA responses observed with the drugs. Thus, the drugs each increase the response to GABA but do not act on channel kinetics in the same manner.

The GABA postsynaptic membrane receptor-ionophore complex. Site of action of convulsant and anticonvulsant drugs

The function of the inhibitory neurotransmitter, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), has been implicated in the mode of action of many drugs which excite or depress the central nervous system. Many convulsant agents appear to block GABA action whereas anticonvulsants enhance GABA action. Some of these drug effects involve altered GABA-mediated synaptic transmission at the level of GABA biosynthesis, release from nerve endings, uptake into cells, and metabolic degradation. A greater number of agents of diverse classes appear to affect GABA action at the postsynaptic membrane, as determined from both electrophysiological and biochemical studies. The recently developed in vitro radioactive receptor binding assays have led to a wealth of new information about GABA action and its alteration by drugs. GABA inhibitory transmission involves the regulation, by GABA binding to its receptor site, of chloride ion channels. In this GABA receptor-ionophore system, other drug receptor sites, one for benzodiazepines and one for barbiturates/picrotoxinin (and related agents) appear to form a multicomponent complex. In this complex, the drugs binding to any of the three receptor categories are visualized to have an effect on GABA-associated chloride channel regulation. Available evidence suggests that the complex mediates many of the actions of numerous excitatory and depressant drugs showing a variety of pharmacological effects.

Pharmacology of GABA-mediated inhibition of spinal cord neurons in vivo and in primary dissociated cell culture

In this paper it is shown that the postsynaptic GABA-receptor chloride ion channel complex is composed of several functional subunits. There are probably at least two stereospecific locations on the receptor for GABA-binding and both must be occupied to obtain an increase in chloride conductance. The interaction between these sites is uncertain but there could be either positive cooperativity between the sites or only a requirement that both sites are occupied without occupation of either site affecting the affinity for GABA of the other site. There is a chloride conductance channel coupled to the GABA receptor which opens for an average of 20 msec and has an average conductance of 18 pS. The GABA-coupled chloride channel may or may not have the same composition as the glycine coupled chloride channel. In addition to the GABA-recognition site and the chloride ion channel, GABA-receptors must have additional binding sites or modulator sites where drugs can bind to modify GABA activation of the GABA receptor. The convulsant PICRO binds to a site which is independent of the GABA site and PICRO reduces GABA responses. Barbiturates and benzodiazepines augment GABA-responses without reducing GABA-binding and thus they must bind to a modulator site independent of the GABA recognition site. Whether or not this is the same site as the PICRO binding site is uncertain. Thus, the GABA-receptor-chloride ion channel complex is composed of at least: 1) two GABA-binding sites; 2) a chloride ion channel; 3) a convulsant binding site (PICRO-binding site) and 4) an anticonvulsant binding site. This organization serves several obvious purposes. First, since two GABA-molecules are required to activate GABA-coupled chloride ion channels, the dose-response relationship for GABA is sigmoidal and steep. Thus minor shifts in GABA affinity will produce large alterations in GABA-responses and the GABA receptor can be easily modulated. Second, since the receptors has binding sites for convulsant and anticonvulsant compounds which decrease and increase GABA-responses, GABAergic inhibition can easily be modulated.

Effects of some antiepileptic drugs in pentetrazol-induced convulsions in mice lesioned with kainic acid

Mice were injected with intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) kainic acid (KA; 0.1 micrograms per animal) and the pentetrazol test was carried out on the fifth day after the administration of the amino acid. The following antiepileptic drugs were tested for anticonvulsant activity in mice lesioned with KA: diazepam (0.4 mg/kg), phenobarbital (12.5 and 25 mg/kg), trimethadione (200 and 400 mg/kg), depakine (200 and 400 mg/kg), carbamazepine (10 and 20 mg/kg), lefadol (bromophenylsuccinimide; 20 mg/kg), and acetazolamide (320 mg/kg). All drugs were given intraperitoneally, except for carbamazepine, which was also given orally in doses of 100 and 200 mg/kg. Pentetrazol was administered subcutaneously in a dose of 110 mg/kg, and the animals were subsequently observed for the occurrence of clonic and tonic convulsions within 30 min. The protective effects of diazepam and phenobarbital were significantly reduced in the KA-lesioned animals, while the actions of the remaining anticonvulsants were unaltered. Moreover, a substantial loss of pyramidal cells in the CA 3 field of the hippocampus was noted after i.c.v. injection of KA. It may therefore be concluded that the mechanism of the action of diazepam and phenobarbital are partially dependent on the intact functions of the hippocampal formation.

Distinction between the effects of barbiturates, benzodiazepines and phenytoin on responses to gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor activation and antagonism by bicuculline and picrotoxin

1 Interactions of depressant and anticonvulsant drugs with the neuronal gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptor + effector system have been examined on afferent fibres to the rat cuneate nucleus in vitro. Three types of interaction have been measured: (a) potentiation of depolarizing responses to the GABA analogue, muscimol: (b) reduction in the potency of bicuculline as an antagonist of muscimol at the GABA receptor: (c) reduction in the potency of picrotoxin as an antagonist of muscimol acting on the effector mechanism. 2 Phenobarbitone reduced the potency of picrotoxin in doses which did not affect the potency of bicuculline and which caused only a small potentiation of muscimol. Pentobarbitone did not show such selectivity, a reduction in potency of picrotoxin always being accompanied by a reduction in potency of bicuculline and a substantial potentiation of muscimol. 3 Flurazepam and lorazepam both reduced the potency of picrotoxin without affecting that of bicuculline and with very little potentiation of muscimol. Phenytoin had no effect on the potency of picrotoxin whilst potentiating muscimol to the same extent as phenobarbitone. 4 The spectrum of drug activity in reducing the potency of picrotoxin correlates well with the reported anticonvulsant effects of these drugs against kindled amygdaloid seizures. Potentiation of muscimol and reduction of bicuculline potency appear more closely related to hypnotic properties.