Localization of Neurotransmitter Receptors

Location is an important part of the physiological function of neurotransmitter receptors. Creative Bioarray is committed to developing a variety of technologies to provide clients with mapping services for the distribution and function of neurotransmitter receptors, providing valuable information for fully understanding the relationship between structure and function in the brain and exploring neuropathological changes.

Introduction

Ion channels and receptors are involved in controlling the membrane potential and excitability of neurons, regulating synaptic transmission and neuronal information communication. Neurotransmitter receptors are complexes of proteins that span the cell membrane, and their opening or closing is under the direct control of chemical ligands, which are primarily neurotransmitters. We know that position is an integral part of the physiological function of ion channels. Consistent with this, the localization of neurotransmitter receptors in the macroscopic neuroanatomy is critical to elucidating their physiological function, as these receptors must be targeted—within nanometer precision—to detect the release of neurotransmitters from presynaptic terminals.

However, visualizing the location of the receptors within the plasma membrane and examining the functional properties of selected groups of receptors on the plasma membrane has been a challenge. In order to gain a more complete understanding of the interrelationship between structure and function in the brain, scientists have sought to develop efficient techniques to map the distribution and function of neurotransmitter transmission receptors. For example, quantitative in vitro receptor autoradiography has been used to map receptor binding sites to provide useful information for uncovering important aspects of brain tissue.

Fig. 1 Schematic diagram that summarizes the main steps in the different autoradiography formats: in vitro, ex vivo, and functional autoradiography. (Manuel, 2015)

Our Services

We are committed to providing our clients with professional neurotransmitter receptors mapping services and delivering detailed reports to our clients within a short time frame, including information on functional relevance and anatomical accuracy. The services we provide to our clients include but are not limited to:

• Determination of the spatial distribution of neurotransmitter receptors along hippocampal neurons.
• Localization of the density of neurotransmitter receptors and transport proteins in the microscopic and macroscopic neural architecture.
• Analysis of the gradients of different neurotransmitter receptors on hippocampal pyramidal neurons and interneurons.
• Determination of the distribution pattern of single or multiple transmitter receptor binding sites.
• Acquisition of microscopic information on the density of binding sites.
• Assessment of the effect of small molecules on G protein-coupled receptor activity.

Our Techniques

The techniques we have established for the localization and mapping of transmitter receptors include but are not limited to:

• Local photolysis of caged neurotransmitters
• Autoradiography
• Imaging mass spectrometry

Applications

• Study on structural and functional connectivity of the brain
• Study on oscillatory neural dynamics
• Mapping receptors to cognitive function
• Mapping receptors and transporters to disease vulnerability

Creative Bioarray provides clients with high-quality receptor mapping services, which helps to better understand the targeting of neurotransmitter receptors in the brain, and provide new molecular and functional information for usable cytoarchitectonic brain maps. If you are interested in our services, please contact us for more details.

Reference

1. Manuel, I.; et al. Neurotransmitter receptor localization: From autoradiography to imaging mass spectrometry. ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 2015, 6(3): 362-373.