QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

HOME  |   SEARCH  |   ARCHIVE  |   SUBSCRIBE  |   CONTACT  |   HELP

The Journal of Neuroscience, March 10, 2004, 24(10):2375-2379; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5187-03.2004

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit an eLetter Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Web of Science (16) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Cottrell, G. T. Articles by Ferguson, A. V. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Cottrell, G. T. Articles by Ferguson, A. V.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

BRIEF COMMUNICATION
Prokineticin 2 Modulates the Excitability of Subfornical Organ Neurons

G. Trevor Cottrell,¹ Qun-Yong Zhou,² and Alastair V. Ferguson¹

¹Department of Physiology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 3N6, and ²Department of Pharmacology, University of California, Irvine, California 92697

The recent discovery of prokineticin 2 (PK2) expression in the suprachiasmatic nucleus and its receptors in critical autonomic control centers of the brain, including the subfornical organ (SFO), suggests the intriguing possibility that PK2 regulates the excitability of SFO neurons and thus influences autonomic function. Using current-clamp techniques to record from dissociated SFO neurons, we examined the effects of PK2 on the excitability of these cells. PK2 (20 nM) induced depolarizations in 40% of SFO neurons (n = 45; mean, 7.5 ± 1.7 mV), an effect that was reversible, PK2-specific, and concentration dependent. The depolarization was accompanied by an increase in action potential frequency from 0.4 ± 0.1 to 1.4 ± 0.5 Hz in responding cells (n = 10). This excitatory effect appears to be, in part, attributable to a PK2-induced decrease in the delayed rectifier potassium current (I_K). In 10 SFO neurons recorded using perforated patch voltage-clamp techniques, six demonstrated a reversible decrease in I_K (mean decrease, 26.7 ± 6.4%) in response to 20 nM PK2, whereas artificial CSF alone was without an effect on these currents. These data are the first to show excitatory effects of PK2 on neurons and, in addition, demonstrate that this peptide modulates voltage-activated K⁺ channels. The activation of SFO neurons by PK2 illustrates a mechanism through which this peptide may exert circadian control of autonomic functions.

Key words: autonomic; circadian; circumventricular; neuropeptide; patch clamp; potassium [K]

---

Received July 23, 2003; revised January 19, 2004; accepted January 19, 2004.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. Fry, G. T. Cottrell, and A. V. Ferguson Prokineticin 2 influences subfornical organ neurons through regulation of MAP kinase and the modulation of sodium channels Am J Physiol Regulatory Integrative Comp Physiol, September 1, 2008; 295(3): R848 - R856. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				Q.-Y. Zhou The Prokineticins: A NOVEL PAIR OF REGULATORY PEPTIDES Mol. Interv., December 1, 2006; 6(6): 330 - 338. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				K. J. Pulman, W. M. Fry, G. T. Cottrell, and A. V. Ferguson The Subfornical Organ: A Central Target for Circulating Feeding Signals J. Neurosci., February 15, 2006; 26(7): 2022 - 2030. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C.-X. Yi, J. van der Vliet, J. Dai, G. Yin, L. Ru, and R. M. Buijs Ventromedial Arcuate Nucleus Communicates Peripheral Metabolic Information to the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus Endocrinology, January 1, 2006; 147(1): 283 - 294. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				T. Kisliouk, H. Podlovni, K. Spanel-Borowski, O. Ovadia, Q.-Y. Zhou, and R. Meidan Prokineticins (Endocrine Gland-Derived Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor and BV8) in the Bovine Ovary: Expression and Role as Mitogens and Survival Factors for Corpus Luteum-Derived Endothelial Cells Endocrinology, September 1, 2005; 146(9): 3950 - 3958. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home  |   Search  |   Archive  |   Subscribe  |   Contact  |   Help