ABSTRACT
On the occasion of the 40 year anniversary of the hugely impactful review by Richard (Dick) Evans and Jeff Watkins, we describe how their work has impacted the field of synaptic plasticity. We describe their influence in each of the major glutamate receptor subtypes: AMPARs, NMDARs, KARs and mGluRs. Particular emphasis is placed on how their work impacted our own studies in the hippocampus. For example, we describe how the tools and regulators that they identified for studying NMDARs (e.g., NMDA, D-AP5 and Mg2+) led to the understanding of the molecular basis of the induction of LTP. We also describe how other tools that they introduced (e.g., (1S,3R)-ACPD and MCPG) helped lead to the concept of metaplasticity.
Subject(s)
Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists/pharmacology , Hippocampus/metabolism , Magnesium/pharmacology , Neuronal Plasticity/physiology , Neuropharmacology/history , Receptors, Ionotropic Glutamate/physiology , Receptors, Metabotropic Glutamate/physiology , Animals , Hippocampus/drug effects , History, 20th Century , Humans , Neuronal Plasticity/drug effects , Receptors, Ionotropic Glutamate/drug effects , Receptors, Metabotropic Glutamate/drug effectsABSTRACT
A series of Special Issues of Neuropharmacology celebrates the 40th anniversary of a seminal review on excitatory amino acid (EAA) receptors by two pioneers of the field - Dick Evans and Jeff Watkins. Brought together in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Bristol in the 1970s, they forged a partnership that, through the synthetic chemistry prowess of Jeff Watkins, which provided novel agonists and antagonists for EAA receptors for Dick Evans's deft experimental studies, generated enormous insight into the multitude of actions of EAAs in the nervous system. Among many achievements from this time was not just the naming of the N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor, but also the demonstration of its antagonism by magnesium ions. Here, Dick and Jeff reflect upon those early halcyon days of EAA research, which, as these six1 Special Issues of Neuropharmacology demonstrate, is very much alive and kicking. Bruno G. Frenguelli, Editor-in-Chief, Neuropharmacology.
Subject(s)
Excitatory Amino Acids/history , Neuropharmacology/history , Receptors, Glutamate/history , Animals , Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists , History, 20th Century , Humans , Receptors, Glutamate/drug effects , Research , United Kingdom , UniversitiesABSTRACT
Neuropharmacology is the science that studies the effects of drugs on the central nervous system. Examining the recent history of neuropharmacology allows us to identify future challenges and to project into the future. The contemporary history of neuropharmacology begins with the empirical use of psychotropic alkaloids in barbiturate preparations. Then the discovery of neuroleptics in the 1950s truly opened up the field of pharmacological science, with psychopharmacological clinical exploration in psychiatry, complemented by the contributions of neurochemists and biochemists discovering and exploring neurotransmission. These studies also contributed to the development of dopaminergic and serotonergic drugs used in neurology. The more recent period brought the advent of neuropsychopharmacology, sharing therapeutic targets in neurology and psychiatry on the one hand, and a translational research approach on the other. Moreover, the pharmacology of brain drugs is still a growing discipline in 2020. Despite emerging pharmacological concepts (biased agonists, glial targeting, epigenetic therapeutics, etc.), entire areas of brain-based therapeutics need to be renewed, particularly in psychiatry, offering great challenges to a new generation of pharmacologists and clinicians.
Subject(s)
Nervous System Diseases/drug therapy , Nervous System Diseases/physiopathology , Neuropharmacology/history , Psychotropic Drugs/pharmacology , Psychotropic Drugs/therapeutic use , History, 20th Century , Humans , Neuropharmacology/trendsABSTRACT
University of Michigan Pharmacology Professor Ed Domino is an expert in the field of neuropsychopharmacology. For over six decades, Dr. Domino has made many contributions to our understanding of psychoactive drugs, but is most well-known for his role in the development of ketamine anesthesia. This article covers the story behind this discovery, along with many other fascinating personal and professional anecdotes, all of which provide insight into the career of a remarkable scientist.
Subject(s)
Anesthetics, Dissociative/history , Ketamine/history , Psychotropic Drugs/history , Anesthetics, Dissociative/pharmacology , History, 20th Century , Humans , Ketamine/pharmacology , Neuropharmacology/history , Psychopharmacology/historyABSTRACT
On March 4, 2017 at the age of 68, Sidney George Shaw (Sid) unexpectedly died from complications following surgery, only four years after retiring from the University of Bern. Trained in biochemistry at Oxford University, Sid had quickly moved into molecular pharmacology and became a key investigator in the field of enzyme biochemistry, vasoactive peptide research, and receptor signaling. Sid spent half his life in Switzerland, after moving to the University of Bern in 1984. This article, written by his friends and colleagues who knew him and worked with him during different stages of his career, summarizes his life, his passions, and his achievements in biomedical research. It also includes personal memories relating to a dear friend and outstanding scientist whose intellectual curiosity, humility, and honesty will remain an example to us all.
