ARACHIDONIC-ACID RELEASED FROM STRIATAL NEURONS BY JOINT STIMULATION OF IONOTROPIC AND METABOTROPIC QUISQUALATE RECEPTORS

ASSOCIATIVE stimulation of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors and quisqualate ionotropic receptors (Qj) induces long-term potentiation at particular glutamatergic synapses1-7. Release of arachidonic acid as a result of stimulation of NMDA receptors8has been proposed to play a part in the establishment of long-term potentiation9-11. But long-term plasticity events at some other glutamatergic synapses do not involve activation of NMDA receptors11-15. Here we report that in mature striatal neurons in primary cultures, quisqualate can release arachidonic acid by associatively activating both quisqualate metabotropic receptors coupled to phospholipase C (Qp) (refs 16-20) and Qi receptors21. Independent activation of these two receptor types with specific agonists did not stimulate arachidonic acid release. These results support a role for the associative activation of Qp and Qf receptors in synaptic plasticity events12-14, including long-term potentiation at par-ticular synapses11,15. © 1990 Nature Publishing Group.