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Increased [³H]quisqualic Acid Binding Density in the Dorsal Striatum and Anterior Insula of Alcoholics: A Post-Mortem Whole-Hemisphere Autoradiography Study

Increased [³H]quisqualic Acid Binding Density in the Dorsal Striatum and Anterior Insula of Alcoholics: A Post-Mortem Whole-Hemisphere Autoradiography Study

Virpi Laukkanen, Olli Kärkkäinen, Hannu Kautiainen, Jari Tiihonen, Markus Storvik

Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging. 2019 May 30;287:63-69.

PMID: 30991250

Abstract:

The function of group I metabotropic glutamate receptors mGluR1 and mGluR5 is involved in the hyperglutamatergic state caused by chronic alcohol. Preclinical studies suggest that group I mGluR modulation could serve as a novel treatment of alcoholism. Considering the wide role of glutamatergic neurochemistry in addiction, group I mGluR binding was studied in brain areas involved in decision-making, learning and memory. Post-mortem whole hemisphere autoradiography was used to study the binding density of [³H]quisqualic acid, a potent group I mGluR agonist, in 9 Cloninger type 1 alcoholics, 8 Cloninger type 2 alcoholics and 10 controls. Binding was studied in the dorsal striatum, hippocampus and cortex. Alcoholics displayed a trend towards increased [³H]quisqualic acid binding in all brain areas. The most robust findings were in the putamen (p = 0.006) and anterior insula (p = 0.005), where both alcoholic subtypes displayed increased binding compared to the controls. These findings suggest altered group I mGluR function in alcoholic subjects in the dorsal striatum, which is involved in habitual learning, and in the anterior insula, which has a pivotal role in the perception of bodily sensations. Increased [³H]quisqualic acid binding might suggest a beneficial impact of mGluR1/5 modulators in the treatment of alcoholism.

Chemicals Related in the Paper:

Catalog Number	Product Name	Structure	CAS Number	Price
AP52809071	Quisqualic acid		52809-07-1	Price

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