Selective Ablation of GABA Neurons in the Ventral Tegmental Area Increases Spontaneous Locomotor Activity.

γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) provide innervation to cortical and subcortical regions of the brain. To solidify the importance of these VTA GABA neurons in behavioral function, we employed the neurotoxin dermorphin-saporin (DS) to selectively lesion VTA GABA...

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Published in:Behavioral Neuroscience Vol. 121; no. 6; pp. 1224 - 1234
Main Authors: Shank, Erik J., Seitz, Patricia K., Bubar, Marcy J., Stutz, Sonja J., Cunningham, Kathryn A.
Format: Article
Published: American Psychological Association December 2007
Subjects:
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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      dt: December 2007
      vid: 121
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      pub: American Psychological Association
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        10.1037/0735-7044.121.6.1224
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        atl: Selective Ablation of GABA Neurons in the Ventral Tegmental Area Increases Spontaneous Locomotor Activity.
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        au:
          Shank, Erik J.
          Seitz, Patricia K.
          Bubar, Marcy J.
          Stutz, Sonja J.
          Cunningham, Kathryn A.
      su:
        Animal locomotion
        Laboratory rats
        GABA
        Neurons
        Brain function localization
      sug:
        subj:
          Animal locomotion
          Laboratory rats
          GABA
          Neurons
          Brain function localization
      ab: γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) provide innervation to cortical and subcortical regions of the brain. To solidify the importance of these VTA GABA neurons in behavioral function, we employed the neurotoxin dermorphin-saporin (DS) to selectively lesion VTA GABA neurons prior to assessing spontaneous motor activity. Rats were bilaterally microinfused with DS (1.0 or 2.0 pmol/200 nl/side) or blank-saporin control (BS, 200 nl/side) into the VTA. Seven days later, DS-treated rats exhibited significantly elevated motility in comparison with BS-treated rats; this elevated motility normalized by Day 14 following pretreatment with 1.0 pmol of DS but was sustained on Day 14 after pretreatment with 2.0 pmol of DS. A selective loss of VTA GABA neurons on Day 14 was demonstrated through reduced expression of mRNA for glutamic acid decarboxylase-67 and (μ-opioid receptor, but not tyrosine hydroxylase (a dopamine neuron marker), in the VTA. Thus, a dose- and time-related selective loss of VTA GABA neurons was accomplished using this novel neurotoxin. This loss of GABA VTA neurons was associated with hypermotility, further supporting their important regulatory role in the generation of behavior. Reprinted by permission of the publisher.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
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