AUTHOR=Dore Kim , Aow Jonathan , Malinow Roberto 

TITLE=The Emergence of NMDA Receptor Metabotropic Function: Insights from Imaging

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Synaptic Neuroscience

VOLUME=8

YEAR=2016

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/synaptic-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnsyn.2016.00020

DOI=10.3389/fnsyn.2016.00020

ISSN=1663-3563

ABSTRACT=<p>The NMDA receptor (R) participates in many important physiological and pathological processes. For example, its activation is required for both long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) of synaptic transmission, cellular models of learning and memory. Furthermore, it may play a role in the actions of amyloid-beta on synapses as well as in the signaling leading to cell death following stroke. Until recently, these processes were thought to be mediated by ion-flux through the receptor. Using a combination of imaging and electrophysiological approaches, ion-flux independent functions of the NMDAR were recently examined. In this review, we will discuss the role of metabotropic NMDAR function in LTD and synaptic dysfunction.</p>