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Brief Communication

Nature Neuroscience 11, 868–870 (1 August 2008) | doi:10.1038/nn.2150

The stress hormone corticosterone conditions AMPAR surface trafficking and synaptic potentiation

Laurent Groc , Daniel Choquet & Francis Chaouloff

Corticosterone facilitates hippocampal glutamate transmission, but the cellular pathways by which AMPA receptor (AMPAR) signaling is adjusted remain elusive. Single quantum-dot imaging in live rat hippocampal neurons revealed that corticosterone triggers, via distinct corticosteroid receptors, time-dependent increases in GluR2-AMPAR surface mobility and synaptic surface GluR2 content.