Date on Honors Thesis

Fall 12-4-2024

Major

Biology

Minor

Chemistry

Examining Committee Member

Dr. Dena Weinberger, Advisor

Examining Committee Member

Dr. Gary Zeruth, Committee Member

Examining Committee Member

Dr. Alexey Arkov, Committee Member

Abstract/Description

Glutamate is the main excitatory neurotransmitter in the CNS, but at the neuromuscular junction, that role is taken by acetylcholine. However, during embryonic development, non-cholinergic receptors, including those for glutamate, are also present at the NMJ, which are not maintained unless used. These receptors can still form functional circuits, as evidenced by a process called neurotransmitter respecification, in which a neuron changes which neurotransmitter it releases, and is accompanied by the upregulation of the corresponding receptor by the muscle. This process has been observed in frogs and in rats. We predict that zebrafish also exhibit this neurotransmitter plasticity. To assess this, this study investigates the presence of ionotropic glutamate receptors—specifically AMPA and kainate receptors (AMPARs and KARs)—in zebrafish (Danio rerio) at various stages of neuromuscular development. Using polymerase chain reaction and gel electrophoresis, we assessed the expression of AMPAR and KAR subunits in collected muscle tissue from embryos aged 16, 19, and 24 hours post-fertilization and in larvae aged 7 days post-fertilization, and compared this expression to that in the whole embryo at the same age. Our results found no expression of AMPAR subunits in the muscle at any age, and expression of three KAR subunits at 19 hpf, but not at any other time. This suggests that more studies with more sensitive methods may be necessary to determine if AMPARs and KARs are present at the zebrafish NMJ.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

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