Reynolds I J, Bear M F
Department of Pharmacology, University of Pittsburgh, PA 15261.
Exp Brain Res. 1991;85(3):611-5. doi: 10.1007/BF00231745.
We have investigated the postnatal development of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors in kitten neocortex by measuring the density of [3H] MK801 binding sites. NMDA receptor density in area 17 markedly increases between postnatal day 7 and 35, and then remains at a high level into adulthood. Similar temporal changes were observed in area 6. A brief period of binocular deprivation did not alter the density of [3H] MK801 binding sites in either brain region. However, dark rearing kittens from birth resulted in a significant decrease after 35 and 120 days in both area 17 and area 6. These results demonstrate that the density of NMDA receptors does not effectively predict the capacity for visual cortical plasticity in kitten neocortex. In addition, these results show that dark rearing produces significant effects in areas of the kitten neocortex not normally associated with visual function.
我们通过测量[3H]MK801结合位点的密度，研究了新生小猫新皮质中N-甲基-D-天冬氨酸（NMDA）受体的产后发育情况。17区的NMDA受体密度在出生后第7天至35天之间显著增加，然后在成年期保持在较高水平。在6区也观察到了类似的时间变化。短期双眼剥夺并没有改变这两个脑区中[3H]MK801结合位点的密度。然而，从出生开始就饲养在黑暗环境中的小猫，在35天和120天后，17区和6区的NMDA受体密度均显著降低。这些结果表明，NMDA受体的密度并不能有效地预测小猫新皮质中视觉皮质可塑性的能力。此外，这些结果表明，饲养在黑暗环境中会对小猫新皮质中通常与视觉功能无关的区域产生显著影响。
