Kainate/AMPA receptors expressed on human fetal astrocytes in long-term culture

✍ Scribed by Keith Cauley; Valery Kukekov; David Young

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1997
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 245 KB
• Volume: 47
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0360-4012
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-4547(19970201)47:3<311::aid-jnr9>3.0.co;2-l

✦ Synopsis

Long-term cultivation of primary human fetal brain cells has yielded a homogeneous population of glial progenitors of extended life span. These human astrocyte precursor (HAP-1) cells have been in culture for greater than 1 year, are diploid, and do not form colonies in soft agar. The culture was established in 10% fetal calf serum (FCS), although cells greatly increase their proliferative rate when both basic fibroblast growth factor and FCS are present in the culture media. HAP-1 cells express the cytoskeletal proteins glial fibrillary acidic protein, vimentin, and nestin. HAP-1 cells express the AMPA/kainate receptor subunit genes GluRs 1, 3, and 4 and the kainate receptor subunit genes GluR6, KA1, and KA2. Immunohistochemistry confirms the expression of GluR subunit proteins. HAP-1 cells demonstrate a kainateresponsive current found to be blockable by CNQX. HAP-1 cells will serve in the study of human glial cells and ligand-gated ion channels and in the identification of compounds which might act as agonists or antagonists at these receptor-ion channel complexes.