Redistribution and increased specificity of GABA(B) receptors during development of the rostral nucleus of the solitary tract

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Distribution of immunoreactive GABA and glutamate receptors in the gustatory portion of the nucleus of the solitary tract in rat

The distribution of glutamate (GLU) and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors within the gustatory portion of the rat nucleus of the solitary tract (gNST) was investigated using immunohistochemical, histological and neural tract tracing techniques. Numerous somata throughout the gNST were immunoreactive for alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionate (AMPA) and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, while few were labeled for kainate receptors. AMPA and NMDA receptors were particularly abundant in the rostral central (RC) subdivision of the gNST, which receives most of the primary afferent input from the oral cavity and contains most of the gNST neurons that project to the parabrachial nuclei (PBN). This finding supports electrophysiological evidence that AMPA and NMDA receptors are involved in responses to orosensory input and indicates that their action may influence ascending taste signals as well. Compared to the ionotropic GLU receptors, few cell bodies were immunoreactive for metabotropic GLU receptors. Somata immunoreactive for GABA(A) and GABA(B) receptors were located throughout the nucleus. The densest neuropil labeling was for GABA(A) receptors in the ventral (V) subnucleus, the gNST subdivision that sends output to brainstem oromotor centers. The distributions of immunolabeling for GLU and GABA receptors imply that different functional roles may exist for specific receptors within this nucleus.

Early GABA(A) receptor clustering during the development of the rostral nucleus of the solitary tract

While there is an abundance of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in the gustatory zone of the nucleus of the solitary tract of the perinatal rat, we know that GABAergic synapse formation is not complete until well after birth. Our recent results have shown that GABA(B) receptors are present at birth in the cells of the nucleus; however, they do not redistribute and cluster at synaptic sites until after PND10. The present study examined the time course of appearance and redistribution of GABA(A) receptors in the nucleus. GABA(A) receptors were also present at birth. However, in comparison to GABA(B) receptors, GABA(A) receptors underwent an earlier translocation to synaptic sites. Extrasynaptic label, for example, of GABA(A) receptors was non-existent compared to GABA(B) receptors at PND10 and well-defined clusters of GABA(A) receptors could be seen as early as PND1. We propose that while GABA(A), receptors may play an early neurotransmitter role at the synapse, GABA(B) receptors may play a non-transmitter neurotrophic role.