| Abstract: | An understanding of the mechanism of kainic acid toxicity to neurons could provide important clues to pathogenesis of Huntington's chorea. The existence of high-affinity binding sites for kainate, a foreign compound, is suggestive of the existence of kainate-like substances in the brain. In addition to such neurotoxic kainate-like substances, and endogenous inhibitor of kainate binding may also exist in the brain to allow the synaptic function to operate normally. Based on this idea, the existence of molecules which inhibit 3H]kainate binding to synaptic membranes was examined in rat brain. An endogenous inhibitor of 3H]kainate binding to synaptic membranes was found in the supernatant obtained from synaptic membranes of rat brain. The inhibitor is a thermostable, basic protein with a relatively low molecular weight. |
