%0 Journal Article %A Chiung-Chun Huang %A Su-Jane Wang %A Po-Wu Gean %T Selective Enhancement of P-Type Calcium Currents by Isoproterenol in the Rat Amygdala %D 1998 %R 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.18-06-02276.1998 %J The Journal of Neuroscience %P 2276-2282 %V 18 %N 6 %X We investigated activation of β-adrenergic receptor–adenylyl cyclase–cAMP cascade on the whole-cell voltage-dependent Ca2+ currents (ICa) in acutely isolated rat basolateral amygdala neurons. Application of β-receptor agonist isoproterenol (Iso) caused a long-term enhancement ofICa. The effect of Iso was blocked by concurrent application of β-receptor antagonist propranolol. However, delayed application of propranolol after theICa enhancement did not affect Iso-induced potentiation, suggesting that the sustained effect was not caused by a slow washout of Iso. Nimodipine and ω-conotoxin-GVIA reduced theICa by ∼35 and ∼29%, respectively, without reducing enhancement of ICa by Iso significantly. The modulation appeared to involve P-type current, because the enhancement was abolished after pretreatment with ω-agatoxin-IVA. Forskolin, an adenylyl cyclase activator, mimicked the action of Iso in enhancing ICa, and this effect was blocked by an inhibitor of cAMP cascade, indicating a cAMP-dependent mechanism. Iso also induced a long-term potentiation (LTP) of synaptic transmission, which could be prevented by P-type Ca2+ channel blockers. These results suggest that P-type Ca2+ channels were selectively upregulated in the basolateral amygdala neurons, and enhancement of P-type currents could contribute to presynaptic form of LTP. %U https://www.jneurosci.org/content/jneuro/18/6/2276.full.pdf