User:Igmyres/Kainate Receptor

Roles
Kainate receptors have both presynaptic and postsynaptic actions. They have a somewhat more limited distribution in the brain than AMPA and NMDA receptors, and their function is less well defined. The convulsant kainic acid induces seizures, in part, by activation of kainate receptors containing the GluK2 subunit and also probably via AMPA receptors  Activation of kainate receptors containing the GluK1 subunit can also induce seizures but deletion of this subunit does not reduce seizure susceptibility to kainate or in other seizure models. Deletion of either GluK1 or GluK2 does not alter kindling epileptogenesis or the expression of kindled seizures.

(Add on to here the different roles that we have found and what that does. 4 main areas that they affect and the picture I create, new exciting roles discovered and add a different paragraph about its new links to neural development and health.)

'''Recent investigation through voltage clamping has shown that kainate receptors have more than just an ionotropic (or directly changing a membrane's conductivity) role in neurons. The metabotropic (or indirect through secondary protein pathways) effect has been verified through many accessory proteins and sustained current through G-protein cascades. The specific link of this pathway remains to be found, as well as the explanation for why the polarization and distribution of KARs varies so much across neurons and brain regions. The proteins have been shown to pace the receptors and help explain KAR’s role in maturation of neural circuits during development.'''

'''One of the larger connections and roles that kainate receptors have been shown to have is to several neurological diseases and conditions. KAR expression and distribution has shown a linkage to schizophrenia, depression, autism, Huntington’s, bipolar disorder, and epilepsy among others. Most come through mutations of GluK1-5. The causation is unclear and the subject of further investigation.'''