Chronic L-alpha-glyceryl-phosphoryl-choline increases inositol phosphate formation in brain slices and neuronal cultures
Aleppo, G.; Nicoletti, F.; Sortino, M.A.; Casabona, G.; Scapagnini, U.; Canonico, P.L.
Pharmacology and Toxicology 74(2): 95-100
1994
ISSN/ISBN: 0901-9928 PMID: 8190709 Document Number: 438919
Repeated, but not single injections of L-alpha-glyceryl-phosphorylcholine (alpha-GPC) significantly increased basal (3H)inositol monophosphate (InsP) formation in hippocampal, cortical, and striatal slices of male rats. The effect was dose-dependent and was accompanied by an increased incorporation of (3H)inositol into the phospholipid fraction. Incubation of brain slices with different neurotransmitter antagonists, such as atropine, prazosin, or L-2-amino-4-phosphonobutanoate (L-AP4) did not modify the increase in (3H)InsP formation produced by alpha-GPC, suggesting that the effect is not mediated by an increased availability of a specific neurotransmitter. Similar results were obtained in cerebellar and cortico-striatal neurones in primary culture exposed to daily addition of alpha-GPC since the second day of maturation in vitro. We suggest that alpha-GPC treatment may result in an increased rate of phospholipid synthesis, including the phosphoinositides available for signal transduction at central nervous system level.