ISSN:
1600-079X
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Medicine
Notes:
Abstract: Glutamate, an excitatory neurotransmitter/neuromodulator involved in cell-to-cell communication within the central nervous system, is now believed to play a role in neuroendocrine function. In this study we describe a single, saturable, stereospecific, and temperature-, time-, and pH-dependent binding site for glutamate in the pineal gland of the rat (Kd= 612 ± 23 nM, Bmax= 3.17 ± 0.33 pmol/mg protein). After removal of the sympathetic innervation to the pineal gland, [3H]glutamate binding displayed a higher apparent affinity (Kd= 412 ± 28 nM) (P 〈 0.05) without a change in binding site number (Bmax= 3.60 ± 0.24 pmol/mg protein). No difference in [3H]glutamate binding site number was observed in pineal glands obtained from animals sacrificed during the middle of the light and dark periods. These data suggest a possible modulatory role for a glutamate binding site in pineal gland function.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-079X.1993.tb00483.x
