Changes in expression of NMDA receptor subunits in the rat lumbar spinal cord following neonatal nerve injury.

The vulnerability of motoneurones to glutamate has been implicated in neurological disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis but it is not known whether specific receptor subtypes mediate this effect. In order to investigate this further, the expression of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor subunits was studied during the first three post-natal weeks when motoneurones are differentially vulnerable to injury following neonatal nerve crush compared to the adult. Unilateral nerve crush was carried out at day 2 after birth (P2) which causes a decrease of 66% in motoneurone number by 14 days (P14).

A case of multiple system atrophy with hyperglycinaemia due to a selective deficiency of glycine transporter mRNA.

A patient presented with features of olivopontocerebellar atrophy and was found to have marked hyperglycinaemia. Severe atrophy of the cerebellum and brain stem was found at post-mortem, with numerous glial cytoplasmic inclusions (GCIs) in atrophic areas, characteristic of multiple system atrophy. In situ hybridization studies of the spinal cord demonstrated a selective reduction in expression of glycine transporter mRNA.

Analysis of AMPA receptor subunit mRNA expression in control and ALS spinal cord.

The distribution of glutamate receptor subunits in human spinal cord has yet to be fully elucidated. The aim of this study was to examine the distribution of mRNAs for the subunits of the AMPA type of glutamate receptor (GluR A, B, C and D) in control human spinal cord using in situ hybridization and to examine in parallel the expression of these mRNAs in patients with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). We also quantitated mRNA levels for these subunits in spinal cord homogenates.