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Nitric oxide synthase‐positive neurons in the rat superior colliculus: Colocalization of NOS with NMDAR1 glutamate receptor, GABA, and parvalbumin
Author(s) -
SoaresMota Marcia,
Henze Isabela,
MendezOtero Rosalia
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
journal of neuroscience research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.72
H-Index - 160
eISSN - 1097-4547
pISSN - 0360-4012
DOI - 10.1002/jnr.1102
Subject(s) - parvalbumin , colocalization , calretinin , calbindin , glutamatergic , neuroscience , nitric oxide synthase , biology , glutamate receptor , population , neurotransmitter , neuropeptide , nmda receptor , inferior colliculus , medicine , endocrinology , chemistry , microbiology and biotechnology , nitric oxide , receptor , central nervous system , biochemistry , nucleus , immunohistochemistry , environmental health , immunology
We analyzed the potential input and output components of nitric oxide synthase (NOS)‐containing neurons in the rat superior colliculus (SC). To identify whether NOS‐positive neurons receive glutamatergic input we investigated the colocalization of NOS with NMDA receptor subunit R1 (NMDAR1). In addition, to examine whether putative nitric oxide synthesizing neurons represent a neurochemically specific or distinct subpopulation of cells in the SC we studied the colocalization of NOS with the neurotransmitter GABA, the calcium‐binding proteins parvalbumin, calbindin and calretinin and with neuropeptides such as somatostatin, substance P and neuropeptide Y. We found that 90% of NOS‐positive neurons in the superficial layers of the rat SC express NMDAR1. Nearly 20% of the population of nitridergic neurons also expresses GABA and 15% of them express parvalbumin. NOS‐positive neurons in the superior colliculus did not contain calretinin, calbindin or either of the neuropeptides tested. The results of this study show that the capacity for synthesizing NO in the SC is largely restricted to neurons that receive glutamatergic inputs and that some of these neurons express GABA or parvalbumin. J. Neurosci. Res. 64:501–507, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.