The xenon-mediated antagonism against the NMDA receptor is non-selective for receptors containing either NR2A or NR2B subunits in the mouse amygdala.

In pharmacological studies using cultured neurones or heterologous expression systems, the N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor has been found as a major target for the inhalational anaesthetic xenon (Xe). NMDA receptors play a crucial role in behavioural and cellular processes related to learning and memory, and NMDA receptor subunits type 2A (NR2A) and type 2B (NR2B) are critical determinants for synaptic plasticity. In the present study, we investigated in an acute mouse brain slice preparation of the basolateral amygdala whether the antagonism of Xe is subunit-selective against the NR2A or NR2B subunit. From principal neurones, pharmacologically isolated NMDA receptor-mediated currents (p-NMDA-Cs) were evoked upon focal photolysis of caged L-glutamate and recorded using the whole-cell patch-clamp technique. To test whether the Xe-induced inhibition of NMDA receptor-mediated currents is selective for NR2A or NR2B subunits, p-NMDA-Cs were recorded in the presence of the NR2A or NR2B subunit antagonists R-S-1-4-bromophenylethylamino-2,3-dioxo-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxalin-5-yl-methylphosphonic acid (NVP-AAM077, 50 nM) or R-R*,S*-alpha-4-Hydroxyphenyl-beta-methyl-4-phenylmethyl-1-piperidinepropanol hydrochloride (Ro 25-6981, 0.5 microM), respectively. The Xe-induced reduction under these conditions was not significantly different from that without NR2A or NR2B blockade. These results provide evidence, that the Xe-induced antagonism against NMDA receptors is non-selective against NR2A- or NR2B-containing receptors.

Olfactory sensitivity for putrefaction-associated thiols and indols in three species of non-human primate.

Using a conditioning paradigm, the olfactory sensitivity of four spider monkeys, three squirrel monkeys and three pigtail macaques to four thiols and two indols, substances characteristic of putrefaction processes and faecal odours, was assessed. With all odorants, the animals significantly discriminated concentrations below 1 p.p.m. (part per million) from the odourless solvent, and in several cases individual animals even demonstrated thresholds below 1 p.p.t. (part per trillion). The detection thresholds of 0.03 p.p.t. for indol in Saimiri sciureus and Macaca nemestrina and 0.96 p.p.t. for ethanethiol in Ateles geoffroyi represent the lowest values among the more than 50 odorants tested so far with these species and are in the same order of magnitude as the lowest detection thresholds reported so far in the rat and the mouse. The results showed (a) all three species of non-human primate to have a highly developed olfactory sensitivity for putrefaction-associated odorants, and (b) a significant correlation between perceptibility in terms of olfactory detection threshold and carbon chain length of the thiols, and a marked effect of the presence vs absence of a methyl group on perceptibility of the indols tested in two of the three species. The results support the hypotheses that (a) between-species differences in neuroanatomical or genetic features may not be indicative of olfactory sensitivity, and (b) within-species differences in olfactory sensitivity may reflect differences in the behavioural relevance of odorants.

The frequency of occurrence of acyclic monoterpene alcohols in the chemical environment does not determine olfactory sensitivity in nonhuman primates.

Using a conditioning paradigm, the olfactory sensitivity of five spider monkeys, three squirrel monkeys, and three pigtail macaques for six acyclic monoterpene alcohols that differ markedly in their frequency of occurrence in plant odors was assessed. The results showed that: (1) all three primate species have a well-developed olfactory sensitivity for acyclic monoterpene alcohols; (2) squirrel monkeys are significantly more sensitive for members of this class of odorants than the other two species and are able to detect all six odorants at concentrations below 0.1 ppm; and (3) there is a lack of positive correlations between olfactory sensitivity and the abundance of the acyclic monoterpene alcohols in flower odors and etheric oils. The results lend support to the growing body of evidence that suggests between-species comparisons of the number of functional olfactory receptor genes or of neuroanatomical features are poor predictors of olfactory performance. The findings do not support the hypothesis that olfactory sensitivity for members of a chemical class may be related to the frequency of occurrence of such odorants in a species' chemical environment.