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Abstract

Publisher Summary:
This chapter describes the instrumentation and theory involved in transient kinetic investigations of neurotransmitter receptor-mediated reactions on the surface of nervous system cells and in the membranes of Xenopus laevis oocytes in which many receptors have been expressed. Photolabile, biologically inert precursors of neurotransmitters (caged neurotransmitters) that can be photolyzed to the neurotransmitters in the microsecond time region form an integral part of the transient kinetic techniques. The use of these techniques was illustrated in investigations of the formation of transmembrane channels, receptor-drug interactions, and integration of excitatory and inhibitory signals by single central nervous system neuron that have temporal and spatial information. The use of caged neurotransmitters in identifying cells that contain a specific receptor and cells that secrete the neurotransmitter in a circuit of cells controlling a measurable response has also been illustrated in the chapter.