IONOTROPIC EXCITATORY AMINO-ACID RECEPTORS IN DISCRETE BRAIN-REGIONS OF KINDLED RATS

A study was performed to examine the specific binding of excitatory amino acid (EAA) receptor subtypes in 5 brain regions of rats kindled from the amygdala or hippocampus, using extensively washed and Triton X-100-treated membranes. Seven days after the last amygdala kindled seizure, [H-3](+)-5-methyl-10,11-dihydro-5H-dibenzo[a,d]cyclohepten-5, 10-imine maleate ([H-3]MK-801) binding, which labels N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-sensitive receptor-linked cation channels, decreased significantly only in the amygdala of kindled rats compared to that of controls under equilibrium assay conditions. There was no significant change in [H-3]MK-801 binding in the amygdala or hippocampus 7 days after the last hippocampal kindled seizure, or 28 days after the last amygdala kindled seizure. Nor was there a significant change in NMDA-sensitive [H-3]glutamate, strychnine-insensitive [H-3]glycine, [H-3]spermidine, [H-3]kainate or [H-3]alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid ([H-3]AMPA) binding in any brain region 7 days after the last amygdala kindled seizure, or in the hippocampus 28 days after the last amygdala kindled seizure. These results indicate that [H-3]MK-801 binding sites labeling NMDA-sensitive receptor-linked cation channels in the amygdala undergo downregulation only transiently, but that none of the subcomponents of the NMDA receptor macromolecular complex exhibit enduring changes at steady state following the completion of amygdala kindling.