Analysis of Whole-Cell NMDA Receptor Currents

During receptor channel activation, the receptor goes through a ligand binding step followed by conformation steps leading to the open channel conformation. The probability of finding the receptor in a particular conformation is given by the apparent rate constants. The apparent rate constants describe the rate of transitions between conformational states and vary among different types of iGluR. To determine these parameters reflecting receptor channel function, several approaches have been developed. In this chapter we describe methods for the measurement of basic kinetic parameters of the NMDA receptor determined from non-stationary analysis of whole-cell currents. Particularly, the apparent rate constants of agonist binding/unbinding, desensitization/resensitization, and the probability of channel opening are determined. Besides the kinetic parameters of the receptor, the number of ion channels in the cell membrane and single-channel conductance are estimated from whole-cell recordings.
Source: Springer protocols feed by Neuroscience - Category: Neuroscience Source Type: news