Summary
The present study has been carried out to determine if glycine, an allosteric modulator of NMDA receptor, is involved in the vascular effect induced by the activation of the CNS NMDA receptors.Icv NMDA (from 0.01 to 1µg/rat in the 3rd ventricle) determined a significant increase in arterial blood pressure in conscious freely moving rats. Moreover, the hypertension was associated with behavioural modifications (jumping, rearing, teething and running). Glycine pretreatment (1 and 10µg/raticv), significantly increased the NMDA hypertension. Alone glycine did not cause any arterial blood pressure modification while it induced a slight sedation. HA-966 (an antagonist of the glycine site on NMDA receptor) administration (1–10µg/raticv 5 min before glycine) significantly antagonized the glycine effects on NMDA hypertension.
Alone HA-966 neither modified arterial blood pressure nor antagonized NMDA hypertension. In conclusion, our investigations confirm NMDA receptor involvement in cardiovascular function and they demonstrate that in vivo glycine positively modulates NMDA receptor.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ascher P, Nowak L (1987) Ionic channels in mouse astrocytes in culture. Trends Neurosci 10: 284–287
Berrino L, Matera MG, Maione S, Vitagliano S, Loffreda A, Marmo E (1990) Excitatory amino acids and cardiovascular apparatus: experimental studies on conscious rats with L-glutamate,N-methyl-D-aspartate, kainate and quisqualate. Acta Physiol Hungarica 75 [Suppl]: 31–32
Burn JH, Finney DJ, Goodwin LG (1952) Biological standardization, 2nd edn. Oxford Medical Press
Henderson G, Johnson JW, Ascher P (1990) Competitive antagonists and partial agonists at the glycine modulatory site of the mouseN-methyl-D-aspartate receptor. J Physiol (Lond) 430: 189–212
Lampa E, Berrino L, Susanna V, Angrisani M, Marrazzo R, Maione S, De Santis D, Fici F, Marmo E (1988a) Glutamergic transmission and cardiovascular apparatus in normotensive rats. Drug Exptl Clin Res 14: 59–69
Lampa E, Cazzola M, Angrisani M, Matera C, Lisa M, Susanna V, Marrazzo R, Chieppa S, Marmo E (1988b) Cardiovascular effects of intracerebral injection of glutamate and kainate in rats. Acta Pharmacol Sin 9: 252–258
Maione S, Vitagliano S, Berrino L, Lampa E, Rossi F (1992) Participation of arginine vasopressin-mediated and adrenergic system-mediated mechanisms in the hypertension induced by intracerebroventricular administration of NMDA in freely moving rats. Neuropharmacology 31: 403–407
Kaplita PV, Ferkany JW (1990) Evidence for direct interactions between the NMDA and glycine recognition sites in brain. Eur J Pharmacol 188: 175–179
Koek W, Colpaert FC (1990) Selective blockade ofN-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-induced convulsions by NMDA antagonists and putative glycine antagonists: relationships with phencyclidine-like behavioral effects. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 252: 349–357
Paxinos G, Watson C (1986) The rat brain in stereotaxic coordinates, 2nd edn. Academic Press, San Diego
Pittaluga A, Raiteri M (1990) Release-enhancing glycine dependent presynaptic NMDA receptors exist on noradrenergic terminals of hippocampus. Eur J Pharmacol 191: 231–234
Raiteri M, Fontana G, Fedele E (1990) Glycine stimulates [3H]noradrenaline release by activating a strychnine-sensitive receptor present in rat hippocampus. Eur J Pharmacol 184: 239–250
Salt TE (1989) Modulation of NMDA receptor-mediated responses by glycine and D-serine in the rat thalamus in vivo. Brain Res 481: 403–406
Schmidt CJ, Taylor VL (1990) Strychnine-sensitive, glycine-induced release of [3H]norepinephrine from rat hippocampal slices. J Neurochem 54: 2077–2081
Snedecor G, Cochran W (1978) Statiscal methods, 6th edn. The Iowa State University Press, Ames, Iowa
Toth E, Lajtha A (1989) Motor effects of intracaudate injection of excitatory amino acids. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 33: 175–179
Vamvakides A (1989) Quelques observations pharmacologiques sur l'action des derives de la glycine en relation avec des particularites du systeme glycinergique central. Aggressologie 30: 465–466
White WF, Brown KL, Frank DM (1989) Glycine binding to rat cortex and spinal cord: binding characteristics and pharmacology reveal distinct population of sites. J Neurochem 53: 503–512
Young AB, Snyder SH (1973) Strychnine binding associated with glycine receptors of the central nervous system. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 70: 2832–2836
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Berrino, L., Vitagliano, S., Maione, S. et al. Modulation by glycine on vascular effect of NMDA: in vivo experimental researches. Amino Acids 4, 127–132 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00805808
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00805808