Donepezil is a strong antagonist of voltage-gated calcium and potassium channels in molluscan neurons

Donepezil is an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor used in Alzheimer's disease therapy. The neuroprotective effect of donepezil has been demonstrated in a number of different models of neurodegeneration including beta-amyloid toxicity. Since the mechanisms of neurodegeneration involve the activation of both Ca(2+)- and K(+)-channels, the study of donepezil action on voltage-gated ionic currents looked advisable. In the present study, the action of donepezil on voltage-gated Ca(2+)- and K(+)-channels was investigated on isolated neurons of the edible snail (Helix pomatia) using the two-microelectrodes voltage-clamp technique. Donepezil rapidly and reversibly inhibited voltage activated Ca(2+)-current (I(Ca)) (IC(50)=7.9 microM) and three types of high threshold K(+)-current: Ca(2+)-dependent K(+)-current (I(C)) (IC(50)=6.4 microM), delayed rectifier K(+)-current (I(DR)) (IC(50)=8.0 microM) and fast transient K(+)-current (I(Adepol)) (IC(50)=9.1 microM). The drug caused a dual effect on low-threshold fast transient K(+)-current (I(A)), potentiating it at low (5 microM) concentration, but inhibiting at higher (7 microM and above) concentration. Donepezil also caused a significant hyperpolarizing shift of the voltage-current relationship of I(Ca) (but not of any type of K(+)-current). Results suggest the possible contribution of the blocking effect of donepezil on the voltage-gated Ca(2+)- and K(+)-channels to the neuroprotective effect of the drug.     

A delayed rectifier potassium current in Xenopus oocytes.

A delayed voltage-dependent K+ current endogenous to Xenopus oocytes has been investigated by the voltage-clamp technique. Both activation and inactivation of the K+ current are voltage-dependent processes. The K+ currents were activated when membrane potential was depolarized from a holding potential of -90 to -50 mV. The peak current was reached within 150 ms at membrane potential of +30 mV. Voltage-dependent inactivation of the current was observed by depolarizing the membrane potential from -50 to 0 mV at 10-mV increments. Voltage-dependent inactivation was a slow process with a time constant of 16.5 s at -10 mV. Removal of Ca2+ from the bath has no effect on current amplitudes, which indicates that the current is Ca2+)-insensitive. Tail current analysis showed that reversal potentials were shifted by changing external K+ concentration, as would be expected for a K(+)-selective channel. The current was sensitive to quinine, a K+ channel blocker, with a Ki of 35 microM. The blockade of quinine is voltage-independent in the range of -20 to +60 mV. Whereas oocytes from the same animal have a relatively homogeneous current distribution, average amplitude of the K+ current varied among oocytes from different animals from 30 to 400 nA at membrane potential of +30 mV. Our results indicate the presence of the endogenous K+ current in Xenopus oocytes with characteristics of the delayed rectifier found in some nerve and muscle cells.     

An asymmetrical kinetic model for veratridine interactions with sodium channels in molluscan neurons

Veratridine alkaloid induces bi-stability or saw-tooth-shaped long potential waves in molluscan neurons. Voltage clamp experiments reveal the production of a slow sodium current whose changes are described by an asymmetric kinetic diagram relating the states of the sodium channels. Methods of the qualitative theory of differential equations were used to determine the condition necessary for such a model to have either an oscillatory solution or a bi-stable behavior. The kinetic diagram was modified to account for the frequency dependence of the slow sodium current production upon repeated short depolarizations. The modified kinetic diagram suggests that open and inactivated sodium channels are turned into channels with slow kinetic parameters; the transition from open channels would be fast, irreversible and restricted to part of the open channels, whereas that from inactivated channels would be slow and fully reversible upon repolarization.     

A model of oscillation generation by molluscan neurons

A model describing slow oscillations of membrane potential in molluscan neurons is suggested. It is based on the view that the depolarization phase is due to the slow calcium current, whereas the hyperpolarization phase is due to the potassium current activated by intracellular Ca ions. It is shown that depending on values of the parameters of the model there are three possible types of electrical activity of the neurons: stable membrane hyperpolarization up to the resting potential which is between ?49 and ?53 mV; slow oscillations of membrane potential from ?30 to ?60 mV, with a period of 12–17 sec, and stable membrane depolarization to between ?40 and ?30 mV, which may lead to the onset of stable rhythmic activity of these neurons. Dependence of the amplitude of the oscillations of potential on the extracellular concentration of Ca, K, and Na ions was calculated and agrees qualitatively with the experimental data of Barker and Gainer [4].     

A slow voltage-activated potassium current in rat vagal neurons.

Potassium currents play a key role in controlling the excitability of neurons. In this paper we describe the properties of a novel voltage-activated potassium current in neurons of the rat dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMV). Intracellular recordings were made from DMV neurons in transverse slices of the medulla. Under voltage clamp, depolarization of these neurons from hyperpolarized membrane potentials (more negative than -80 mV) activated two transient outward currents. One had fast kinetics and had properties similar to A-currents. The other current had an activation threshold of around -95 mV (from a holding potential -110 mV) and inactivated with a time constant of about 3s. It had a reversal potential close to the potassium equilibrium potential. This current was not calcium dependent and was not blocked by 4-aminopyridine (5 mM), catechol (5 mM) or tetraethylammonium (20 mM). It was completely inactivated at the resting membrane potential. This current therefore represents a new type of voltage-activated potassium current. It is suggested that this current might act as a brake to repetitive firing when the neuron is depolarized from membrane potentials negative to the resting potential.     

Effects of tetraethylammonium on potassium currents in a molluscan neurons

The effects of tetraethylammonium (TEA) on the delayed K+ current and on the Ca2+-activated K+ current of the Aplysia pacemaker neurons R-15 and L-6 were studied. The delayed outward K+ current was measured in Ca2+-free ASW containing tetrodotoxin (TTX), using brief depolarizing clamp pulses. External TEA blocks the delayed K+ current reversibly in a dose-dependent manner. The experimental results are well fitted with a Michaelis-Menten expression, assuming a one-to-one reaction between TEA and a receptor site, with an apparent dissociation constant of 6.0 mM. The block depends on membrane voltage and is reduced at positive membrane potentials. The Ca2+-activated K+ current was measured in Ca2+-free artificial seawater (ASW) containing TTX, using internal Ca2+ ion injection to directly activate the K+ conductance. External TEA and a number of other quaternary ammonium ions block the Ca2+-activated K+ current reversibly in a dose-dependent manner. TEA is the most effective blocker, with an apparent dissociation constant, for a one-to-one reaction with a receptor site, of 0.4 mM. The block decreases with depolarization. The Ca2+-activated K+ current was also measured after intracellular iontophoretic TEA injection. Internal TEA blocks the Ca2+-activated K+ current (but the block is only apparent at positive membrane potentials), is increased by depolarization, and is irreversible. The effects of external and internal TEA can be seen in measurements of the total outward K+ current at different membrane potentials in normal ASW.     

Gastrin-releasing peptide modulates fast delayed rectifier potassium current in Per1-expressing SCN neurons

The mammalian circadian clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) drives and maintains 24-h physiological rhythms, the phases of which are set by the local environmental light-dark cycle. Gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) communicates photic phase setting signals in the SCN by increasing neurophysiological activity of SCN neurons. Here, the ionic basis for persistent GRP-induced changes in neuronal activity was investigated in SCN slice cultures from Per1::GFP reporter mice during the early night. Recordings from Per1 -fluorescent neurons in SCN slices several hours after GRP treatment revealed a significantly greater action potential frequency, a significant increase in voltage-activated outward current at depolarized potentials, and a significant increase in 4-aminopyridine-sensitive fast delayed rectifier (fDR) potassium currents when compared to vehicle-treated slices. In addition, the persistent increase in spike rate following early-night GRP application was blocked in SCN neurons from mice deficient in Kv3 channel proteins. Because fDR currents are regulated by the clock and are elevated in amplitude during the day, the present results support the model that GRP delays the phase of the clock during the early night by prolonging day-like membrane properties of SCN cells. Furthermore, these findings implicate fDR currents in the ionic basis for GRP-mediated entrainment of the primary mammalian circadian pacemaker.     

Taurine- and FMRFamide-dependent modulation of receptor- and voltage-gated currents by cerebrolysine in molluscan neurons

The action of cerebrolysine, a biogenic stimulator, on the receptor- and voltage-gated ionic currents was studied in identifiedHelix pomatia neurons. Cerebrolysine reversibly suppressed the acetylcholine (ACh)- and glutamate (GLU)-induced chloride currents in some neurons (LP11, B4, E12) with a latency of 9±3 sec, while not affecting these currents in other neurons. The suppressing effect of cerebrolysine on the voltage-gated sodium and calcium currents was also selective. There were fast and slow phases, with latencies of 52±8 sec and 5±1 min, respectively, in the cerebrolysine effect on the voltage-gated sodium current. The effect of cerebrolysine on the sodium current during the fast suppression phase could be simulated with FMRFamide (10^–5 M), while those exerted on the ACh- and GLU-induced currents could be simulated with taurine (10^–6 M). The effects of cerebrolysine and the above substances were non-additive. These facts allow us to suggest that both taurine and FMRFamide (or its fragment) are involved in the mechanism of posttraumatic and postsurgical curative effects of cerebrolysine.Neirofiziologiya/Neurophysiology, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp. 190–196, May–June, 1994.     

Inactivation of the slow potassium outward current in crab muscle fibre.

The slow outward current (IK2) recorded in crab muscle fibre using the double sucrose gap method decreases when high and maintained depolarizations are applied. This decrease corresponds to a true inactivation of the potassium conductance rather than to a shift in the reversal potential of the charge carrying ion following local accumulation.     

Enzymatic regulation of calcium current in dialyzed and intact molluscan neurons

Isolated neurons of Helix aspersa were dialyzed and voltage clamped under conditions that isolate the Ca current. The rapid time-dependent run-down, or washout, of Ca current could be slowed by addition of 1 mM EGTA to the dialysis solution. A more effective means of slowing washout was the use of agents that promote protein phosphorylation, such as cAMP, Mg-ATP and the catalytic subunit (CS) of cAMP-dependent protein kinase, along with leupeptin, a tripeptide inhibitor of proteases. In the presence of these agents, no internal EGTA was required to prevent Ca current washout. Thus, during dialysis with 100 microM leupeptin, 7 mM Mg-ATP and 20 micrograms/ml CS, the Ca current remained stable for up to several hours. The rate of Ca-dependent inactivation of the current that occurs during a depolarizing step showed only a small decline during prolonged dialysis. Under these conditions, introduction of 10 microM calmodulin plus 40 micrograms/ml calcineurin, a Ca-calmodulin-dependent phosphatase, caused a significant increase in the rate of Ca current inactivation during a depolarizing step. This increase in rate of inactivation, as well as the original inactivation, was eliminated by introduction of EGTA or replacement of external Ca with Ba, results that are consistent with the ion dependency for activation of calcineurin. When internal ATP was replaced with ATP-gamma-S, a hydrolysis-resistant analogue, the rate of Ca current inactivation slowed, providing further evidence that inactivation involves a dephosphorylation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Kinetic analysis of cAMP-activated Na+ current in the molluscan neuron. A diffusion-reaction model

cAMP-activated Na+ current (INa,cAMP) was studied in voltage-clamped neurons of the seaslug Pleurobranchaea californica. The current response to injected cAMP varied in both time course and amplitude as the tip of an intracellular injection electrode was moved from the periphery to the center of the neuron soma. The latency from injection to peak response was dependent on the amount of cAMP injected unless the electrode was centered within the cell. Decay of the INa,cAMP response was slowed by phosphodiesterase inhibition. These observations suggest that the kinetics of the INa,cAMP response are governed by cAMP diffusion and degradation. Phosphodiesterase inhibition induced a persistent inward current. At lower concentrations of inhibitor, INa,cAMP response amplitude increased as expected for decreased hydrolysis rate of injected cAMP. Higher inhibitor concentrations decreased INa,cAMP response amplitude, suggesting that inhibitor-induced increase in native cAMP increased basal INa,cAMP and thus caused partial saturation of the current. The Hill coefficient estimated from the plot of injected cAMP to INa,cAMP response amplitude was close to 1.0. An equation modeling INa,cAMP incorporated terms for diffusion and degradation. In it, the first-order rate constant of phosphodiesterase activity was taken as the rate constant of the exponential decay of the INa,cAMP response. The stoichiometry of INa,cAMP activation was inferred from the Hill coefficient as 1 cAMP/channel. The equation closely fitted the INa,cAMP response and simulated changes in the waveform of the response induced by phosphodiesterase inhibition. With modifications to accommodate asymmetric INa,cAMP activation, the equation also simulated effects of eccentric electrode position. The simple reaction-diffusion model of the kinetics of INa,cAMP may provide a useful conceptual framework within which to investigate the modulation of INa,cAMP by neuromodulators, intracellular regulatory factors, and pharmacological agents.     

Role of calcium and protein kinase C in development of the delayed rectifier potassium current in Xenopus spinal neurons.

The delayed rectifier current of embryonic Xenopus spinal neurons plays the central role in developmental conversion of calcium-dependent action potentials to sodium-dependent spikes. During its maturation, this potassium current undergoes a pronounced increase in rate of activation. The mechanism underlying the change in kinetics was analyzed with whole-cell voltage clamp of neurons cultured under various conditions. Calcium is necessary at an early stage of development, to permit influx that triggers subsequent release of calcium from intracellular stores. Its action is prevented by depletion of protein kinase C and mimicked by stimulation of the kinase. Calcium influx through voltage-dependent channels at early stages of development regulates the differentiation of potassium current kinetics and modulation of the ionic dependence of action potentials.     

Guaiacol and vanilloid compounds modulate the A-type potassium currents in molluscan neurons

The actions of guaiacol (2-methoxy-phenol), vanillin (4-hydroxy-3-methoxy-benzaldehyd) and other vanilloid compounds such as zingerone (4-/4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl/-2-butanon) and eugenol(2-methoxy4-/2-propenyl/phenol) were investigated on the fast outward potassium currents (A-type currents) in molluscan neurons. Guaiacol (0.01-0.1%, w/v) moderately decreased the peak amplitude but increased the rate of inactivation of the A-currents in dose-dependent way (Kd = 0.06% 4 mM, nH = 0.8). Vanillin (5 mM) slightly decreased the peak amplitude of the A-currents in Helix neurons but its action was more pronounced in dialysed Lymnaea nerve cells. However, vanillin similarly decreased the time-to-peak and the time constant of decay of the A-currents both in the faster and the slower inactivating Lymnaea and Helix neurons (Kd = 5 mM, nH = 0.6). The voltage-dependence of activation and inactivation of the A-currents were not significantly influenced by guaiacol and vanillin in Helix or Lymnaea neurons. Vanillin hardly influenced the delayed outward currents, but decreased the leak currents in the identified LPa and RPa 2,3 neurons. A structure-activity analysis clearly showed that increasing alkyl tail length from the aldehyde side of the vanillin molecule increased the efficacy of the various compounds on the amplitude of the A-currents and modified the kinetical influence on the A-current channel. Furthermore, an attenuation of the late outward currents and an increase of the leak conductance also developed in the presence of zingerone or eugenol. Excitatory actions of the studied vanilloids predominated on the various molluscan neurons.     

三氟氯氰菊酯对棉铃虫神经细胞延迟整流钾电流的抑制作用

用膜片钳技术首次研究了三氟氯氰菊酯对离体培养的棉铃虫中枢神经细胞延迟整流钾通道电流的影响。结果表明,药物作用前有81%和39%的细胞的通道分别在-30 mV 和 -40 mV 激活（n=21）。三氟氯氰菊酯（10^-5 mmol/L）作用15 min后,有63%和38%细胞的通道分别在-40 mV 和 -50 mV 激活（n=8）;作用1 min后电流幅值明显降低,抑制率达到了37.7%（n=19）;加药后激活曲线明显左移且Vh 值变化显著,但k值没有明显变化。实验结果说明,三氟氯氰菊酯作用后,通道更容易激活,但显著抑制电流峰值,导致神经敏感性降低,棉铃虫中枢神经细胞钾通道也是拟除虫菊酯类药物的作用靶标之一。     

ACh对大鼠皮层体感区神经元延迟整流钾电流的抑制作用

利用全细胞膜片钳技术研究乙酰胆碱(acetylcholine,ACh)对大鼠皮层体感区神经元延迟整流钾电流(IK)的调制作用。结果表明:(1)ACh(0．1、1、10、100 μmol/L)对大鼠皮层体感区神经元IK有抑制作用,并具有剂量依赖性关系(P<0．01)。 (2)ACh可使IK激活曲线的斜率变大,并使激活曲线向超极化方向移动。IK激活曲线的半数激活电压(V1/12)和斜率因子(k)分别由给药前的(-41．8±9．7)mV和(30．7±7．2)mV变为给药后的(-122．4±38．6)mV和(42．4±7．0)mV。(3)100 μmol/L的N受体拮抗剂筒箭毒碱(tubocurarine)可减弱ACh对IK的抑制作用,在指令电压+60 mV时tubocurarine+ACh组的IK幅度下降了(16．9± 13．8)％(n=8),与10 μmol/L ACh组引起的(36．5±7．8)％的IK下降幅度相比,有极显著差异(P<0．01)。10 μmol/L的M1受体拮抗剂哌仑西平(pirenzepin)拮抗ACh对IK的抑制作用不明显(n=7,P>0．05);而10 μmol/L的M3受体拮抗剂4-DAMP可部分拮抗ACh对IK的抑制作用,并且4-DAMP+ACh组使IK的电流值下降了(26．8±4．7)％(n=6),与ACh组引起的IK电流下降相比,有显著差异(P<0．05)。(4)蛋白激酶C(protein kinase C,PKC)阻断剂chelerythrine拮抗ACh对IK的抑制作用,PKC激动剂PDBu可增强ACh对IK的抑制作用(P<0．05)。综上所述,ACh对人鼠皮层体感区神经元IK的抑制作用主要是通过烟碱受体(nAChRs)和M3受体介导,并经过PKC信号途径。     

花生四烯酸对大鼠顶叶皮层神经元延迟整流钾电流的抑制作用

目的和方法:采用全细胞式膜片钳技术,观察花生四烯酸(AA)对大鼠顶叶皮层神经元延迟整流钾电流(Ik)的影响。结果:①AA(10μmol/L)对大鼠顶叶皮层神经元Ik有抑制作用,抑制率为33.9%±8.74%(P<0.01)。②AA可使IK激活曲线的斜率因子变大且曲线向右移动,IK激活曲线的V1/2和k分别由给药前的(-55.3±0.9)mV和(10.3±0.4)mV,变为给药后的(-50.8±2.4)mV和(21.0±3.5)mV。③AA可使IK失活曲线斜率因子变大且曲线向左移动,IK失活曲线的V1/2和k分别由给药前的(-45.3±0.3)mV和(15.6±0.8)mV,变为给药后的(-70.9±1.9)mV和(36.5±2.1)mV。结论:花生四烯酸可抑制大鼠顶叶皮层神经元的延迟整流钾电流,并影响其动力学特征。     

Determinants of voltage-gated potassium channel surface expression and localization in Mammalian neurons

Neurons strictly regulate expression of a wide variety of voltage-dependent ion channels in their surface membranes to achieve precise yet dynamic control of intrinsic membrane excitability. Neurons also exhibit extreme morphological complexity that underlies diverse aspects of their function. Most ion channels are preferentially targeted to either the axonal or somatodendritic compartments, where they become further localized to discrete membrane subdomains. This restricted accumulation of ion channels enables local control of membrane signaling events in specific microdomains of a given compartment. Voltage-dependent K+ (Kv) channels act as potent modulators of diverse excitatory events such as action potentials, excitatory synaptic potentials, and Ca2+ influx. Kv channels exhibit diverse patterns of cellular expression, and distinct subtype-specific localization, in mammalian central neurons. Here we review the mechanisms regulating the abundance and distribution of Kv channels in mammalian neurons and discuss how dynamic regulation of these events impacts neuronal signaling.     

Effects of tocopherol derivatives on arachidonic acid-dependent acetylcholine-induced current in molluscan neurons

-Tocopherol (vitamin E) and some of its derivatives have been found to exert modulatory actions, opposite to each other, on acetylcholine-induced current in identified molluscan neurons. A comparison of the infrared absorption spectra of arachidonic acid obtained in the presence of vitamin E, its analog, and some of its derivatives with the results of electrophysiological experiments allows us to suggest that vitamin E and its derivatives are catalysts either slowing down or accelerating the arachidonic acid metabolism, correspondingly.Neirofiziologiya/Neurophysiology, Vol. 25, No. 3, pp. 216–218, May–June, 1993.     

The nootropic drug vinpocetine modulates different types of potassium currents in molluscan neurons

Three types of high-threshold K+ currents were recorded in isolated neurons of the snail Helix pomatia using a two-microelectrode voltage clamp technique: transient K+ current (I(A)), delayed rectifier (I(KD)) and Ca2+-dependent K+ current (I(K(Ca))). Vinpocetine (1-100 microM) applied to the bath affected different types of K+ current in different ways: I(A) was increased (35+/-14%), I(KD) was moderately inhibited (20+/-9%) and I(K(Ca)) was strongly suppressed (45+/-15%). When I(A) and I(K(Ca)) were present in the same cell, vinpocetine exerted a dual effect on the total K+ current, depending on the amplitude of the test stimulus. In the presence of vinpocetine, the I-V curve crossed the control I-V curve. The inhibition of I(K(Ca)) by vinpocetine between 1 and 100 microM is unlikely to be a result of Ca2+ current (I(Ca)) suppression, as the latter was inhibited only at vinpocetine concentrations exceeding 300 microM. Dibutyryl cyclic GMP (dbcGMP) (but not dbcAMP) mimicked the effects of vinpocetine in the majority of cells tested (coefficient of correlation r=0.60, P<0.05, n=22). The data suggest that modulation of different types of K+ current in neuronal membrane can contribute, at least partially, to the nootropic effect of vinpocetine through the regulation of intracellular Ca2+ concentration.     

Inactivation kinetics of voltage-gated calcium channels in glutamatergic neurons are influenced by SNAP-25

SNAP-25 forms part of the SNARE core complex that mediates membrane fusion. Biochemical and electrophysiological evidence supports an accessory role for SNAP-25 in interacting with voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs) to modulate channel activity. We recently reported that endogenous SNAP-25 negatively regulates VGCC activity in glutamatergic neurons from rat hippocampal cultures by shifting the voltage-dependence of inactivation of the predominant P/Q-type channel current in these cells. In the present study, we extend these findings by investigating the effect that manipulating endogenous SNAP-25 expression has on the inactivation kinetics of VGCC current in both glutamatergic and GABAergic cells recorded from 9-13 DIV cultures. Silencing SNAP-25 in glutamatergic neurons significantly slowed the inactivation rate of P/Q-type VGCC current whereas alterations in SNAP-25 expression did not alter inactivation rates in GABAergic neurons. These results indicate that endogenous SNAP-25 plays an important role in P/Q-type channel regulation in glutamatergic neurons.