Stimulating effect of 6R-tetrahydrobiopterin on CA(2+) channels in neurons of rat dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus

We have recently found that 6R-tetrahydrobiopterin (6R-BH4), a natural cofactor for aromatic L-amino acid hydroxylases and nitric oxide synthase, enhances dopamine release. Here, using a slice patch method, we examined the effect of 6R-BH4 on Ca2+ channels in neurons of rat dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus, where dopaminergic neurons are densely located. 6R-BH4 enhanced N-type Ca2+ channel currents, whereas 6S-BH4, a diastereoisomer of 6R-BH4, had little effect. Neither sodium nitroprusside, a nitric oxide generator, nor L-DOPA, a product of tyrosine hydroxylation, mimicked the effect of 6R-BH4. These findings suggest that 6R-BH4 enhances N-type Ca2+ channel currents in stereospecifically and independently of its cofactor activities as observed in its dopamine releasing action, and raise possibility that 6R-BH4 enhances dopamine release by activating Ca2+ channels. (C) 1996 Academic Press, Inc.