Genomic and Functional Analysis of Vesicular Inhibitory Amino Acid Transporter During Mouse Embryogenesis

Abstract

The specification of particular neuronal phenotypes during embryonic development requires the appropriate activation and regulation of genes encoding the proteins required for neurotransmitter synthesis, vesicular packaging and re-uptake from the synaptic cleft. Each neurotransmitter is packaged into synaptic vesicles by its own distinct vesicular transporter. In addition, neurotransmitter packaging is well controlled by other co-factors (reviewed in Ahnert-Hilger et al., 2003). Components of GABAergic neurons GABAergic neurons are the principal inhibitory neurons in the mammalian central nervous system (CNS), where GABA is synthesized from glutamate by two glutamate decarboxylases (GAD), namely GAD65 (Gad2) and GAD67 (Gad1) (Erlander et al., 1991). GABA is then loaded into synaptic vesicles by the vesicular inhibitory amino acid transporter (VIAAT, also known as VGAT). Four GABA transporters (GAT 1-4) are responsible for the re-uptake of GABA from the synaptic cleft through the plasma membrane. Inhibitory GABAergic transmission is mediated by binding of GABA to its ionotropic receptors, GABAA and GABAC, which are ligand-gated chloride channels, and its metabotropic receptor, GABAB (Fig. 1).