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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America logoLink to Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
. 1993 Sep 1;90(17):8264–8267. doi: 10.1073/pnas.90.17.8264

Zn2+ potentiates excitatory action of ATP on mammalian neurons.

C Li 1, R W Peoples 1, Z Li 1, F F Weight 1
PMCID: PMC47329  PMID: 7690146

Abstract

Despite the increasing recognition that ATP is an important extracellular excitatory mediator in the nervous system, the regulation of ATP receptors is poorly understood. Because the extracellular Zn2+ concentration is regulated in a variety of biological tissues, we studied modulation of the ATP-gated cation channel by Zn2+ in mammalian neurons using the whole-cell patch-clamp technique. In approximately 73% of cells tested, the amplitude of ATP-activated membrane ion current increased up to 5-fold in the presence of micromolar concentrations of Zn2+. The characteristics of this action suggest that Zn2+ increases the apparent affinity of the receptor for ATP. In addition, Zn2+ increased membrane depolarization and action potential firing elicited by ATP. These observations suggest that Zn2+ may play a physiological role in regulating the excitatory action of ATP on mammalian neurons.

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Selected References

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