The application of the glutamate analog L-2-amino-4-phosphonobutyric acid (L-AP4) to neurons produces a suppression of synaptic transmission. Although L-AP4 is a selective ligand at a subset of metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs), the precise physiological role of the L-AP4-activated mGluRs remains primarily unknown. To provide a better understanding of the function of L-AP4 receptors, we have generated and studied knockout (KO) mice lacking the mGluR4 subtype of mGluR that displays high affinity for L-AP4. The mGluR4 mutant mice displayed normal spontaneous motor activity and were unimpaired on the bar cross test, indicating that disruption of the mGluR4 gene did not cause gross motor abnormalities, impairments of novelty-induced exploratory behaviors, or alterations in fine motor coordination. However, the mutant mice were deficient on the rotating rod motor-learning test, suggesting that mGluR4 KO mice may have an impaired ability to learn complex motor tasks. Patch-clamp and extracellular field recordings from Purkinje cells in cerebellar slices demonstrated that L-AP4 had no effect on synaptic responses in the mutant mice, whereas in the wild-type mice 100 microM L-AP4 produced a 23% depression of synaptic responses with an EC50 of 2.5 microM. An analysis of presynaptic short-term synaptic plasticity at the parallel fiber-->Purkinje cell synapse demonstrated that paired-pulse facilitation and post-tetanic potentiation were impaired in the mutant mice. In contrast, long-term depression (LTD) was not impaired. These results indicate that an important function of mGluR4 is to provide a presynaptic mechanism for maintaining synaptic efficacy during repetitive activation. The data also suggest that the presence of mGluR4 at the parallel fiber-->Purkinje cell synapse is required for maintaining normal motor function.

Thyroid hormone (TH) is critical for cardiac development and heart function. In heart disease, TH metabolism is abnormal, and many biochemical and functional alterations mirror hypothyroidism. Although TH therapy has been advocated for treating heart disease, a clear benefit of TH has yet to be established, possibly because of peripheral actions of TH. To assess the potential efficacy of TH in treating heart disease, type 2 deiodinase (D2), which converts the prohormone thyroxine to active triiodothyronine (T3), was expressed transiently in mouse hearts by using the tetracycline transactivator system. Increased cardiac D2 activity led to elevated cardiac T3 levels and to enhanced myocardial contractility, accompanied by increased Ca 2؉ transients and sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca 2؉ uptake. These phenotypic changes were associated with up-regulation of sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum calcium ATPase (SERCA) 2a expression as well as decreased Na ؉ ͞Ca 2؉ exchanger, ␤-myosin heavy chain, and sarcolipin (SLN) expression. In pressure overload, targeted increases in D2 activity could not block hypertrophy but could completely prevent impaired contractility and SR Ca 2؉ cycling as well as altered expression patterns of SERCA2a, SLN, and other markers of pathological hypertrophy. Our results establish that elevated D2 activity in the heart increases T3 levels and enhances cardiac contractile function while preventing deterioration of cardiac function and altered gene expression after pressure overload.calcium ͉ cardiac hypertrophy ͉ sarcoplasmic reticulum ͉ deiodinase ͉ transgenic mice T hyroid hormone (TH) is essential for normal development in vertebrates (1), with TH levels rising postnatally and peaking in the third week of life (2). This surge is critical for fetal-to-adult switch in the cardiac gene program and is responsible for changes in Ca 2ϩ homeostasis, myosin isozyme content [␣-myosin heavy chain (MHC)-to-␤-MHC switch], and action potential profile (3, 4). Intriguingly, the genetic and functional changes associated with heart failure, such as reduced Ca 2ϩ transients and ␣-MHC-to-␤-MHC shifts, which recapitulate the fetal gene program, are also observed in hypothyroidism (5, 6). In addition, TH metabolism and signaling are abnormal in heart failure (5, 7, 8). For example, circulating and cardiac triiodothyronine (T3) levels (i.e., active TH) are reduced in advanced heart disease, after acute myocardial infarction, and in patients with cardiopulmonary bypass. These T3 changes occur in association with decreased peripheral conversion of thyroxine (T4) into T3 (5, 8) and elevated cardiac deiodinase type 3 (D3) activity (9). TH receptor expression is also altered in pathological hypertrophy (10), and myocardial contractility is impaired in mice lacking TH receptors (11). Not surprisingly, TH and its analogue 3,5-diiodothyropropionic acid (DITPA) have been advocated for treating heart failure (12, 13) and for reversing cardiac dysfunction in patients with hypothyroidism (5), although TH use has been limited by car...

SignificanceCystic fibrosis is caused by mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene that encodes a chloride channel located in the apical membrane of epithelia cells. The cAMP signaling pathway and protein phosphorylation are known to be primary controlling mechanisms for channel function. In this study, we present an alternative activation pathway that involves calcium-activated calmodulin binding of the intrinsically disordered regulatory (R) region of CFTR. Beyond their potential therapeutic value, these data provide insights into the intersection of calcium signaling with control of ion homeostasis and the ways in which the local CFTR microdomain organizes itself.