Differences across sexes on head-twitch behavior and 5-HT2A receptor signaling in C57BL/6J mice.

Psychedelics, also known as classical hallucinogens, affect processes related to perception, cognition and sensory processing mostly via the serotonin 5-HT2A receptor (5-HT2AR). This class of psychoactive substances, which includes lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), psilocybin, mescaline and the substituted amphetamine 1-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodophenyl)-2-aminopropane (DOI), is receiving renewed attention for their potential therapeutic properties as it relates to psychiatric conditions such as depression and substance use disorders. Current studies focused on the potentially clinical effects of psychedelics on human subjects tend to exclude sex as a biological variable. Much of the understanding of psychedelic pharmacology is derived from rodent models, but most of this preclinical research has only focused on male mice. Here we tested the effects of DOI on head-twitch behavior (HTR) - a mouse behavioral proxy of human psychedelic potential - in male and female mice. DOI elicited more HTR in female as compared to male C57BL/6J mice, a sex-specific exacerbated behavior that was not observed in 129S6/SvEv animals. Volinanserin (or M100907) - a 5-HT2AR antagonist - fully prevented DOI-induced HTR in male and female C57BL/6J mice. Accumulation of inositol monophosphate (IP1) in the frontal cortex upon DOI administration showed no sex-related effect in C57BL/6J mice. However, the pharmacokinetic properties of DOI differed among sexes - brain and plasma concentrations of DOI were lower 30 and 60 min after drug administration in female as compared to male C57BL/6J mice. Together, these results suggest strain-dependent and sex-related differences in the behavioral and pharmacokinetic profiles of the 5-HT2AR agonist DOI in C57BL/6J mice, and support the importance of studying sex as a biological variable in preclinical psychedelic research.

Reformulating a Pharmacophore for 5-HT2A Serotonin Receptor Antagonists.

Several pharmacophore models have been proposed for 5-HT2A serotonin receptor antagonists. These typically consist of two aromatic/hydrophobic moieties separated by a given distance from each other, and from a basic amine. Although specified distances might vary, the models are relatively similar in their general construction. Because our preliminary data indicated that two aromatic (hydrophobic) moieties might not be required for such action, we deconstructed the serotonin-dopamine antipsychotic agent risperidone (1) into four smaller structural fragments that were thoroughly examined in 5-HT2A receptor binding and functional (i.e., two-electrode voltage clamp (TEVC) and intracellular calcium release) assays. It was apparent that truncated risperidone analogues behaved as antagonists. In particular, 6-fluoro-3-(1-methylpiperidin-4-yl)benzisoxazole (4) displayed high affinity for 5-HT2A receptors (Ki of ca. 12 nM) relative to risperidone (Ki of ca. 5 nM) and behaved as a potent 5-HT2A serotonin receptor antagonist. These results suggest that multiple aromatic (hydrophobic) moieties are not essential for high-affinity 5-HT2A receptor binding and antagonist activity and that current pharmacophore models for such agents are very much in need of revision.

Cross-signaling in metabotropic glutamate 2 and serotonin 2A receptor heteromers in mammalian cells.

We previously reported that co-expression of the Gi-coupled metabotropic glutamate receptor 2 (mGlu2R) and the Gq-coupled serotonin (5-HT) 2A receptor (2AR) in Xenopus oocytes (Fribourg et al. Cell 147:1011-1023, 2011) results in inverse cross-signaling, where for either receptor, strong agonists suppress and inverse agonists potentiate the signaling of the partner receptor. Importantly, through this cross-signaling, the mGlu2R/2AR heteromer integrates the actions of psychedelic and antipsychotic drugs. To investigate whether mGlu2R and 2AR can cross-signal in mammalian cells, we stably co-expressed them in HEK293 cells along with the GIRK1/GIRK4 channel, a reporter of Gi and Gq signaling activity. Crosstalk-positive clones were identified by Fura-2 calcium imaging, based on potentiation of 5-HT-induced Ca(2+) responses by the inverse mGlu2/3R agonist LY341495. Cross-signaling from both sides of the complex was confirmed in representative clones by using the GIRK channel reporter, both in whole-cell patch-clamp and in fluorescence assays using potentiometric dyes, and further established by competition binding assays. Notably, only 25-30 % of the clones were crosstalk-positive. The crosstalk-positive phenotype correlated with (a) increased colocalization of the two receptors at the cell surface, (b) lower density of mGlu2R binding sites and higher density of 2AR binding sites in total membrane preparations, and (c) higher ratios of mGlu2R/2AR normalized surface protein expression. Consistent with our results in Xenopus oocytes, a combination of ligands targeting both receptors could elicit functional crosstalk in a crosstalk-negative clone. Crosstalk-positive clones can be used in high-throughput assays for identification of antipsychotic drugs targeting this receptor heterocomplex.

Allosteric signaling through an mGlu2 and 5-HT2A heteromeric receptor complex and its potential contribution to schizophrenia.

Heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide-binding protein (G protein)-coupled receptors (GPCRs) can form multiprotein complexes (heteromers), which can alter the pharmacology and functions of the constituent receptors. Previous findings demonstrated that the Gq/11-coupled serotonin 5-HT2A receptor and the Gi/o-coupled metabotropic glutamate 2 (mGlu2) receptor-GPCRs that are involved in signaling alterations associated with psychosis-assemble into a heteromeric complex in the mammalian brain. In single-cell experiments with various mutant versions of the mGlu2 receptor, we showed that stimulation of cells expressing mGlu2-5-HT2A heteromers with an mGlu2 agonist led to activation of Gq/11 proteins by the 5-HT2A receptors. For this crosstalk to occur, one of the mGlu2 subunits had to couple to Gi/o proteins, and we determined the relative location of the Gi/o-contacting subunit within the mGlu2 homodimer of the heteromeric complex. Additionally, mGlu2-dependent activation of Gq/11, but not Gi/o, was reduced in the frontal cortex of 5-HT2A knockout mice and was reduced in the frontal cortex of postmortem brains from schizophrenic patients. These findings offer structural insights into this important target in molecular psychiatry.

Positive allosteric modulators of metabotropic glutamate 2 receptors in schizophrenia treatment.

The past two decades have witnessed a rise in the 'NMDA receptor hypofunction' hypothesis for schizophrenia, a devastating disorder that affects around 1% of the population worldwide. A variety of presynaptic, postsynaptic, and regulatory proteins involved in glutamatergic signaling have thus been proposed as potential therapeutic targets. This review focuses on positive allosteric modulation of metabotropic glutamate 2 receptors (mGlu2Rs) and discusses how recent preclinical epigenetic data may provide a molecular explanation for the discrepant results of clinical studies, further stimulating the field to exploit the promise of mGlu2R as a target for schizophrenia treatment.

G protein-coupled receptor signaling to Kir channels in Xenopus oocytes.

Kir3 (or GIRK) channels have been known for nearly three decades to be activated by direct interactions with the ßγ subunits of heterotrimeric G (Gαßγ) proteins in a membrane-delimited manner. Gα also interacts with GIRK channels and since PTX-sensitive Gα subunits show higher affinity of interaction they confer signaling specificity to G Protein- Coupled Receptors (GPCRs) that normally couple to these G protein subunits. In heterologous systems, overexpression of non PTX-sensitive Gα subunits scavenges the available Gßγ and biases GIRK activation through GPCRs that couple to these Gα subunits. Moreover, all Kir channels rely on their direct interactions with the phospholipid PIP2 to maintain their activity. Thus, signals that activate phospholipase C (e.g. through Gq signaling) to hydrolyze PIP2 result in inhibition of Kir channel activity. In this review, we illustrate with experiments performed in Xenopus oocytes that Kir channels can be used efficiently as reporters of GPCR function through Gi, Gs or Gq signaling. The membrane-delimited nature of this expression system makes it highly efficient for constructing dose-response curves yielding highly reproducible apparent affinities of different ligands for each GPCR tested.