Photic induction of Fos protein in the suprachiasmatic nucleus is inhibited by the NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801

Hiroshi Abe, Benjamin Rusak, Harold A. Robertson

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154 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Exposure of rodents to light can induce expression of a number of immediate-early genes, including c-fos, in cells of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), a dominant pacemaker in the mammalian circadian system. We examined the effects of pre-treatment with the non-competitive N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist MK-801, on the induction of Fos-like immunoreactivity (Fos-lir) in cells in the hamster SCN. At doses of 3 and 5 mg/kg, MK-801 treatment blocked photic induction of Fos-lir in the rostral SCN and ventrolateral portions of the caudal SCN but failed to block induction of Fos-lir in a discrete region of the dorsolateral SCN. These results suggest that photic induction of Fos-lir in most of the SCN depends on activation of an NMDA-type receptor which is sensitive to MK-801, but that Fos-lir in one portion of the SCN is induced by a mechanism which is not antagonized by MK-801.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)9-12
Number of pages4
JournalNeuroscience Letters
Volume127
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 10 1991

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
H.A. was supported by a Killam Postdoctoral Fellowship and a fellowship from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. We are grateful to D. Goguen and H. Grant for their technical assistance.

Funding Information:
Supported by grants from the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research (90-0104), the Medical Research Council of Canada (MA8929), and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (A0305).

ASJC Scopus Subject Areas

  • General Neuroscience

PubMed: MeSH publication types

  • Journal Article
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

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Abe, H., Rusak, B., & Robertson, H. A. (1991). Photic induction of Fos protein in the suprachiasmatic nucleus is inhibited by the NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801. Neuroscience Letters, 127(1), 9-12. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-3940(91)90881-S