Publication Date:
1999-01-05
Description:
Programmed cell death (apoptosis) occurs during normal development of the central nervous system. However, the mechanisms that determine which neurons will succumb to apoptosis are poorly understood. Blockade of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) glutamate receptors for only a few hours during late fetal or early neonatal life triggered widespread apoptotic neurodegeneration in the developing rat brain, suggesting that the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate, acting at NMDA receptors, controls neuronal survival. These findings may have relevance to human neurodevelopmental disorders involving prenatal (drug-abusing mothers) or postnatal (pediatric anesthesia) exposure to drugs that block NMDA receptors.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Ikonomidou, C -- Bosch, F -- Miksa, M -- Bittigau, P -- Vockler, J -- Dikranian, K -- Tenkova, T I -- Stefovska, V -- Turski, L -- Olney, J W -- AG 11355/AG/NIA NIH HHS/ -- DA 05072/DA/NIDA NIH HHS/ -- MH 38894/MH/NIMH NIH HHS/ -- New York, N.Y. -- Science. 1999 Jan 1;283(5398):70-4.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Department of Pediatric Neurology, Charite-Virchow Clinics, Humboldt University, Augustenburger Platz 1, 13353 Berlin, Germany. hrissanthi.ikonomidou@charite.de〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9872743" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉
Keywords:
Animals
;
*Apoptosis
;
Brain/*cytology/drug effects/embryology/growth & development
;
Calcium Channel Blockers/pharmacology
;
Dizocilpine Maleate/pharmacology
;
Dopamine Antagonists/pharmacology
;
Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
;
Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists/pharmacology
;
Fetus
;
Haloperidol/pharmacology
;
Immunohistochemistry
;
In Situ Nick-End Labeling
;
Microscopy, Electron
;
Muscarinic Antagonists/pharmacology
;
*Nerve Degeneration
;
Neurons/*cytology/drug effects/metabolism
;
Quinoxalines/pharmacology
;
Rats
;
Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate/*antagonists & inhibitors/metabolism
;
Scopolamine Hydrobromide/pharmacology
Print ISSN:
0036-8075
Electronic ISSN:
1095-9203
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Computer Science
,
Medicine
,
Natural Sciences in General
,
Physics