Elsevier

Neuroscience

Volume 122, Issue 1, 20 November 2003, Pages 111-121
Neuroscience

Purinergic P2 receptors trigger adenosine release leading to adenosine A2A receptor activation and facilitation of long-term potentiation in rat hippocampal slices

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0306-4522(03)00523-2Get rights and content

Abstract

Electrophysiological recordings were used to investigate the effects of ATP analogues on θ-burst-induced long-term potentiation (LTP) in rat hippocampal slices. α,β-Methylene ATP (α,β-MeATP; 20 μM) decreased LTP from 36±9% to 17±5%, an effect prevented by adenosine A1 receptor blockade in accordance with the localised catabolism of ATP analogues into adenosine, leading to adenosine A1 receptor activation. Thus, to probe the role of extracellular ATP, all experiments were performed with the A1 receptor selective antagonist, 1,3-dipropyl-8-cyclopentylxanthine (50 nM). In these conditions, α,β-MeATP or 5′-adenylylimido-diphosphate (β,γ-ImATP; 20 μM) facilitated LTP by 120%, an effect prevented by the P2 receptor antagonists, pyridoxalphosphate-6-azophenyl-2′-4′-disulphonic acid (PPADS; 20 μM) or suramin (75 μM), as well as by the P2X1/3-selective antagonist 8-(benzamido)naphthalene-1,3,5-trisulfonate (10 μM). The facilitations of LTP by either α,β-MeATP or β,γ-ImATP (20 μM) were also prevented by both 4-(2-[7-amino-2-(2-furyl(1,2,4)-triazolo(2,3a)-(1,3,5)triazin-5-yl-amino]ethyl)phenol (50 nM) or 7–2(-phenylethyl)-5-amino-2-(2-furyl)-pyrazolo-[4,3-e]-1,2,4-triazolo[1,5-c] pyrimidine (50 nM), antagonists of facilitatory adenosine A2A receptors, were occluded by the A2A receptor agonist, CGS 21680 (10 nM) and were prevented by the protein kinase C inhibitor, chelerythrine (6 μM) and unaffected by the protein kinase A inhibitor, H89 (1 μM). Furthermore, β,γ-ImATP (20 μM) enhanced [3H]adenosine outflow from rat hippocampal slices by nearly 150%, an effect prevented by PPADS (20 μM) or suramin (75 μM). The adenosine transport inhibitors, nitrobenzylthioinosine (5 μM) and dipyridamole (10 μM) also prevented β,γ-ImATP (20 μM)-induced [3H]adenosine outflow and facilitation of LTP. These results suggest that ATP analogues facilitate LTP through P2 receptor activation that mainly triggers adenosine release leading to the activation of adenosine A2A receptors.

Section snippets

Drugs

Adenosine deaminase (type VI; 1803 U/ml; EC 3.5.4.4), S-(p-nitrobenzyl)-6-thioinosine (NBTI), α,β-methylene ATP (α,β-MeATP) and 5-adenylylimido-diphosphate (β,γ-Imido ATP) were from Sigma (Reagente 5, Porto, Portugal), 1,3-dipropyl-8-cyclopentylxanthine (DPCPX), 8-{4-[(2-aminoethyl)amino]carbonylmethyl-oxyphenyl}xanthine (XAC), suramin, 2-[4-(2-p-carboxyethyl)phenylamino]-5′-N-ethylcarboxamidoadenosine (CGS 21680), pyridoxal phosphate-6-azophenyl-2,4-disulphonic acid (PPADS), and

ATP analogues facilitate LTP when adenosine A1 receptors are blocked

The application of θ-burst stimulation (three trains of 100 Hz, four stimuli, separated by 200 ms) in one pathway caused LTP with an amplitude of 36.4±8.7% (n=4). The application of a similar θ-burst stimulation in the other pathway in the presence of αβ-MeATP (20 μM) elicited a smaller LTP (16.6±5.0%, n=4, P<0.05). This inhibitory effect of the ATP analog is similar to the inhibition of LTP by adenosine A1 receptor activation (de Mendonça and Ribeiro, 1990) and it is known that, under basal

Discussion

The present results show that the modulation by extracellular ATP analogues of θ-burst-induced LTP in rat hippocampal slices requires the activation of P2 receptors, but ultimately depends on the induced release of adenosine and activation of adenosine receptors. Upon blockade of inhibitory adenosine A1 receptors, ATP activates P2 receptors that trigger an enhanced adenosine outflow through nucleoside transporters, particularly from nerve terminals and astrocytes, and this released adenosine

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (POCTI/43633/1999 and POCTI/36372/1999). The authors thank I. Araújo and J. O. Malva for their help in the experiments using cultured hippocampal neurons and astrocytes.

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