Kainate receptors mediate synaptic transmission between cones and ‘Off’ bipolar cells in a mammalian retina

Steven H. DeVries () and Eric A. Schwartz
Additional contact information
Steven H. DeVries: University of Texas Houston Health Science Center
Eric A. Schwartz: University of Chicago

Nature, 1999, vol. 397, issue 6715, 157-160

Abstract: Abstract Light produces a graded hyperpolarization in retinal photoreceptors1,2 that decreases their release of synaptic neurotransmitter3,4. Cone photoreceptors use glutamate5,6 as a neurotransmitter with which to communicate with two types of bipolar cell. Activation of metabotropic glutamate receptors in ‘On’ bipolar cells7,8 initiates a second-messenger cascade that can amplify small synaptic inputs from cones. In contrast, it is not known how the ionotropic glutamate receptors that are activated in ‘Off’ bipolar cells9,10 are optimized for transmitting small, graded signals. Here we show, by recording from a cone and a synaptically connected ‘Off’ bipolar cell in slices of retina from the ground squirrel, that transmission is mediated by glutamate receptors of the kainate-preferring subtype. In the dark, a cone releases sufficient neurotransmitter to desensitize most postsynaptic kainate receptors. The small postsynaptic current that persists (

Date: 1999
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/16462 Abstract (text/html)
Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:nature:v:397:y:1999:i:6715:d:10.1038_16462

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/

DOI: 10.1038/16462

Access Statistics for this article

Nature is currently edited by Magdalena Skipper

More articles in Nature from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().