This volume covers methodologies, ranging from the molecular level to the network level, used to study receptor-receptor interactions in heteroreceptor complexes inside the central nervous system. The chapters in this book cover topics such as biochemical binding techniques; receptor autoradiography; superfused synaptosome techniques; RTK-GPCR interaction; fluorescence and bioluminiscence energy transfer methods, Co-IP cytometry-based FRET; and novel bioinformatic approaches to understand membrane heteroreceptor complexes and the global panorama of their receptor-receptor interactions. In Neuromethods series style, chapters include the kind of detail and key advice from the specialists needed to get successful results in your laboratory. Cutting-edge and thorough, Receptor-Receptor Interactions in the Central Nervous System is a valuable resource for any scientist or researcher interested in this field of study.

A New Intramembrane Integrative Mechanism.

This book is the proceedings of an International Wenner-Gren Center Foundation Symposium on "Excitotoxins" held at the Wenner-Gren Center in Stockholm on August 26 and 27, 1982. We are particularly happy that so many of the leading scientists in this field have been able to participate in this symposium. Since the book on "Kainic Acid" appeared in 1978 edited by Dr. McGeers and Dr. John Olney there has been an explosive interest in the research on neuroexcitatory and toxic amino acids. We therefore feIt the time was right to bring the leading experts in this field together by organising a symposium on "Excitotoxins". In this way we hoped to have a penetrating and friendly discussion on the mechanisms underlying the neuroexcitatory and neurotoxic properties of excitotoxins and their relationship to the glutamate and aspartate neuron systems of the brain. In Sweden we have previously had a symposium on "6-hydroxydopamine as a denervation tool in catecholamine research" held in Goteborg, Sweden, July 17-19, 1975 and organized by Drs. Gosta Jonsson, Torbjorn Malmfors and Charlotte Sachs. This symposium illustrated the considerable interest Swedish neuroscientists have had on highly specific neurotoxins, such as 6-hydroxydopamine, 5,6-dihydroxytryptamine and 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine; neurotoxins, which can produce damage to a certain type of transmitter-identified neuron. However, the neurotoxins, kainic acid and ibotenic acid represent another type of an invaluable tool in the experimental studies on brain function.

The tridecapeptide neurotensin (NT) was first identified in bovine hypothalamic extracts and characterized by Carraway and Leeman (1973,1975,1976) and has subsequently been found in all classes of vertebrates (Carraway and Leeman 1976; Kitabgi et al. 1976; Kataoka et al. 1979; Langer et al. 1979; Reinecke et al. 1980a; Cooper et al. 1981; Grant et al. 1982; Carraway et al. 1982; Eldred and Karten 1983), many invertebrates (Reinecke et al. 1980 b; Grimmelikhuijzen et al. 1981; Price et al. 1982), and certain bacteria (Bhatnagar and Carraway 1981). It is distributed throughout the mammalian central nervous system (CNS) (Uhl and Snyder 1977 a, b), gastrointestinal tract (Sundler et al. 1977; Schultzberg et al. 1980), cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), adrenals, pancreas, and plasma (Fernstrom et al. 1980). When administered systemically, the peptide has a variety of effects such as hypotension, hyperglycemia, decreased gastric acid secretion, decreased gut motility, and altered secretion of anterior pituitary hormones (Leeman and Carraway 1982). NT apparently does not cross the blood-brain barrier in appre- ciable quantities; however, when administered directly into the CNS, it produces a number of physiological and behavioral effects. A burgeoning body of evidence supports the role of NT as a neurotransmitter or neuromodulator. Thus far, het- erogeneous CNS distribution, release of NT upon neuronal depolarization, satu- rable and specific binding of NT to receptors, and degradation by peptidases have all been demonstrated.