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Immunocytochemical localization of the GABA A receptor in the cerebral cortex of the lizard Psammodromus algirus
Author(s) -
Guirado Salvador,
Dávila Jose Carlos
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
journal of comparative neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.855
H-Index - 209
eISSN - 1096-9861
pISSN - 0021-9967
DOI - 10.1002/cne.903440409
Subject(s) - gabaa receptor , biology , immunocytochemistry , gabaergic , cerebral cortex , neuroscience , hippocampal formation , cortex (anatomy) , immunostaining , gamma aminobutyric acid , receptor , anatomy , endocrinology , immunohistochemistry , inhibitory postsynaptic potential , immunology , biochemistry
This study examined the distribution and localization of the γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA) A receptor in the brain cortex of a reptile by light and electron microscopy, to test whether cortical GABA inhibition is mainly mediated through the GABA A receptro complex. We used preembedding immunocytochemistry and a monoclonal antibody, raised against the receptor complex, that recognizes the β2 and β3 subunits of the receptor. GABA A receptors were distributed throughout the entire cerebral restricted to the plexiform layers of the cortex as seen by light microscopy. This granular aspect of the immunoreactivity most likely corresponds to the immunopositive dendritic and axonal profiles observed under the electron microscope. Some neurons in the medial and lateral cortices displayed pathches of immunoreactivity along the cell body and processes, and as a result their morphology was outlined. We discuss the possibility that these neurons were GABAergic as well. The immunocytochemical data demonstrate that the distribution and localization of GABA A receptors in discrete regions of the reptilian cerebral cortex resemble that of parts of the hippocampal formation of humans and rats, suggesting that the basic configuration of the GABA system in these regions is conserved. © 1994 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.