During brain ontogenesis, the temporal and spatial generation of the different types of neuronal and glial cells from precursors occurs as a sequence of successive progenitor stages whose proliferation, survival and cell-fate choice are controlled by environmental and cellular regulatory molecules. Neurotransmitters belong to the chemical microenvironment of neural cells, even at the earliest stages of brain development. It is now established that specific neurotransmitter receptors are present on progenitor cells of the developing central nervous system and could play, during neural development, a role that has remained unsuspected until recently. The present review focuses on the occurrence of neurotransmitters and their corresponding ligand-gated ion channel receptors in immature cells, including neural stem cells of specific embryonic and neonatal brain regions. We summarize in vitro and in vivo data arguing that neurotransmitters could regulate morphogenetic events such as proliferation, growth, migration, differentiation and survival of neural precursor cells. The understanding of neurotransmitter function during early neural maturation could lead to the development of pharmacological tools aimed at improving adult brain repair strategies.

1 In this study in vitro and in vivo approaches were combined in order to investigate if the antiepileptic mechanism(s) of action of levetiracetam (LEV; Keppra 1 ) may involve modulation of inhibitory neurotransmission. 2 GABA-and glycine-gated currents were studied in vitro using whole-cell patch-clamp techniques applied on cultured cerebellar granule, hippocampal and spinal neurons. Protection against clonic convulsions was assessed in vivo in sound-susceptible mice. The eect of LEV was compared with reference anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs): carbamazepine, phenytoin, valproate, clonazepam, phenobarbital and ethosuximide. 3 LEV contrasted the reference AEDs by an absence of any direct eect on glycine-gated currents. At high concentrations, beyond therapeutic relevance, it induced a small reduction in the peak amplitude and a prolongation of the decay phase of GABA-gated currents. A similar action on GABA-elicited currents was observed with the reference AEDs, except ethosuximide. 4 These minor direct eects contrasted with a potent ability of LEV (EC 50 =1 ± 10 mM) to reverse the inhibitory eects of the negative allosteric modulators zinc and b-carbolines on both GABA A and glycine receptor-mediated responses. . In contrast, the benzodiazepine receptor antagonist¯umazenil (up to 10 mg kg 71) was without any eect on the protection aorded by LEV. 7 The results of the present study suggest that a novel ability to oppose the action of negative modulators on the two main inhibitory ionotropic receptors may be of relevance for the antiepileptic mechanism(s) of action of LEV.

Multipotent neural stem and progenitor cells (NS/PCs) are well-established cell subpopulations occurring in the developing, and also in the mature mammalian nervous systems. Trophic and transcription factors are currently the main signals known to influence the development and the commitment of NS/PCs and their progeny. However, recent studies suggest that neurotransmitters could also contribute to neural development. In that respect, rodent-cultured embryonic NS/PCs have been reported to express functional neurotransmitter receptors. No similar investigation has, however, been made in postnatal and/or in adult rodent brain stem cells. In this study, using RT-PCR and immunocytochemical methods, we show that alpha(1)-, alpha(2)- and beta-subunit mRNAs and alpha-subunit proteins of the glycine ionotropic receptor are expressed by 80.5 +/- 0.9% of postnatal rat striatum-derived, nestin-positive cells within cultured neurospheres. Whole-cell patch-clamp experiments further demonstrated that glycine triggers in 33.5% of these cells currents that can be reversibly blocked by strychnine and picrotoxin. This demonstrates that NS/PCs express functional glycine receptors, the consequence(s) of their activation remaining unknown.

Since cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks) and their endogenous inhibitors (Cdkis) play an essential role as regulators of cell cycle withdrawal and onset of differentiation within oligodendroglial cells, we assessed here the effects of exogenous chemical Cdk inhibitors (CKIs) on cultured rat cortical oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs). We showed that purine derivatives and especially roscovitine strongly inhibited OPCs proliferation. In the presence of mitogenic signals, roscovitine synergized with thyroid hormone to stimulate oligodendrocyte differentiation. Roscovitine also prevented oligodendroglial apoptosis induced by growth factor deprivation. We thus demonstrated that small molecular weight chemical CKIs have important effects on crucial events of oligodendroglial development in vitro. This might open prospects for using these apparently well tolerated agents in remyelination strategies.