Muscarinic M1 and M2 receptors, fasting and seizure development in animals

Year 2018, Volume: 8 Issue: 4, 308 - 313, 28.12.2018

Merve Saygı Bacanak

Abstract

Muscarinic M1 and M2 receptors are widely distributed in the brain and contribute to

various physiological and pathological functions. It is well known that enhancement of

cholinergic activity produces convulsions in animals. Pilocarpine, the M1 muscarinic

receptor agonist, is commonly used to induce seizures in rodents. On the other hand

it has been reported that fasted rats and mice pretreated with the M1 and M2 receptor

antagonist atropine, scopolamine or biperiden develop convulsions after food intake

indicating cholinergic hypoactivity as the underlying mechanism. This review will

present pharmacological data for the M1 and M2 receptors in the brain and focus on

the contrasting findings related to their contribution to convulsions.

Keywords

Seizures, receptors, muscarinic m1, muscarinic m2

References

• 1] Levey AI, Kitt CA, Simonds WF, Price DL, Brann MR. Identification and localization of muscarinic acetylcholine receptor proteins in brain with subtype-specific antibodies. J Neurosci 1991; 11: 3218-26.