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Practical Considerations for the Use of DREADD and Other Chemogenetic Receptors to Regulate Neuronal Activity in the Mammalian Brain

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Viral Vectors for Gene Therapy

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 1937))

Abstract

Chemogenetics is the process of genetically expressing a macromolecule receptor capable of modulating the activity of the cell in response to selective chemical ligand. This chapter will cover the chemogenetic technologies that are available to date, focusing on the commonly available engineered or otherwise modified ligand-gated ion channels and G-protein-coupled receptors in the context of neuromodulation. First, we will give a brief overview of each chemogenetic approach as well as in vitro/in vivo applications, then we will list their strengths and weaknesses. Finally, we will provide tips for ligand application in each case.

Each technology has specific limitations that make them more or less suitable for different applications in neuroscience although we will focus mainly on the most commonly used and versatile family named designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs or DREADDs. We here describe the most common cases where these can be implemented and provide tips on how and where these technologies can be applied in the field of neuroscience.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by grants from the Swedish Research Council (K2014-79X-22510-01-1 and ÄR-MH-2016-01997); Michael J Fox foundation, Swedish Parkinson Foundation; Crafoord foundation and the Bagadilico Linnaeus consortium. TB is supported by Ass. Senior lectureship from the Bente Rexed foundation.

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  1. Molecular Neuromodulation, Wallenberg Neuroscience Center, Lund University, Lund, Sweden

    Patrick Aldrin-Kirk & Tomas Björklund

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  1. Patrick Aldrin-Kirk
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  2. Tomas Björklund
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Correspondence to Tomas Björklund .

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  1. Translational Science and Molecular Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI, USA

    Fredric P. Manfredsson

  2. Translational Science and Molecular Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI, USA

    Matthew J. Benskey

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Aldrin-Kirk, P., Björklund, T. (2019). Practical Considerations for the Use of DREADD and Other Chemogenetic Receptors to Regulate Neuronal Activity in the Mammalian Brain. In: Manfredsson, F., Benskey, M. (eds) Viral Vectors for Gene Therapy. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1937. Humana Press, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-9065-8_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-9065-8_4

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-9064-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-9065-8

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