Abstract
Excitotoxic neuronal death, associated with neurodegeneration and stroke, is triggered primarily by massive Ca2+ influx arising from overactivation of glutamate receptor channels of the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) subtype. To search for channel blockers, synthetic combinatorial libraries were assayed for block of agonist-evoked currents by the human NR1-NR2A NMDA receptor subunits expressed in amphibian oocytes. A set of arginine-rich hexapeptides selectively blocked the NMDA receptor channel with IC50, approximately 100 nM, a potency similar to clinically tolerated blockers such as memantine, and only marginally blocked on non-NMDA glutamate receptors. These peptides prevent neuronal cell death elicited by an excitotoxic insult on hippocampal cultures.
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Ferrer-Montiel, A., Merino, J., Blondelle, S. et al. Selected peptides targeted to the NMDA receptor channel protect neurons from excitotoxic death. Nat Biotechnol 16, 286–291 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0398-286
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0398-286
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