Neurotransmitter Receptors
Receptor fingerprints of the brain
Neurotransmitter receptors represent the molecular basis for structure-function relationships in the brain. Located in the membrane of neurons, they are responsible for transmitting signals from the outside to the inside of the cell. Each brain region has a specific expression pattern of different receptor types - a distinct receptor fingerprint - with crucial importance for its specialised function. We generate maps of regional and laminar differences in neurotransmitter receptor distribution patterns and integrate these with cytoarchitectonics. These maps provide important insights into the relationship between receptor gradients and known functional hierarchies and cognitive networks.
Pathological changes in receptor expression
We can find characteristic changes in receptor densities in many neurological and psychiatric diseases including epilepsy, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease and other degenerative disorders. We study these alterations in patient samples and animal models in order to better understand the underlying disease mechanisms as a basis to identify new therapeutic targets.
The method in a nutshell
We measure the densities of neurotransmitter receptors using quantitative in vitro autoradiography. Receptors in frozen tissue sections are detected with radio-activelly-labelled ligands. The concentration of the receptors can then be determined allowing for quantification in distinct anatomical positions. The densities are visualized as receptor fingerprints, which provide the mean density and standard deviation for each of the analyzed receptor types, averaged across samples.
The 3D reconstruction of receptor autoradiograms is being carried out in the context of the HIBALL project.
Data & Applications
Our neurotransmitter receptor density maps are openly available via the Human Brain Project’s EBRAINS infrastructure.
Density measurements of different receptors
Datasets containing the densities of receptors for classical neurotransmitters in a range of different brain regions are openly available via the EBRAINS Knowledge Graph.
Contact
PD Dr. rer. nat.
Nicola Palomero-Gallagher
Head of research group receptors
Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1)
Forschungszentrum Jülich
52425 Jülich
Germany
Phone: +49 2461 61-4790
Key Publications
Multimodal mapping of macaque monkey somatosensory cortex
Progress in neurobiology, 239: 102633
Towards multi-modal, multi-species brain atlases: part one
Brain structure & function, 228(5): 1041 - 1044
Architecture and connectivity of the human angular gyrus and of its homolog region in the macaque brain
Brain Structure & Function, 228: 57-61
Cytoarchitectonic, receptor distribution and functional connectivity analyses of the macaque frontal lobe
Elife, 12: e82850
Mapping cyto- and receptor architectonics to understand brain function and connectivity
Biological Psychiatry, 93:471-479
Relationships between neurotransmitter receptor densities and expression levels of their corresponding genes in the human hippocampus
Neuroimage, 273: 120095
The inferior frontal sulcus: cortical segregation, molecular architecture and function
Cortex 153: 235-256
Combined analysis of cytoarchitectonic, molecular and transcriptomic patterns reveal differences in brain organization across human functional brain systems
Neuroimage, 257: 119286
Personalized brain models identify neurotransmitter receptor changes in Alzheimer's disease
Brain: awab375
Receptor architecture of macaque and human early visual areas: not equal, but comparable
Brain Structure & Function 227: 1247-1263
Multimodal mapping and analysis of the cyto- and receptorarchitecture of the human hippocampus
Brain structure & function 225, 881–907
Differences in cytoarchitecture of Broca's region between human, ape and macaque brains
Cortex 118: 132-153
Cortical layers: Cyto-, myelo-, receptor- and synaptic architecture in human cortical areas
NeuroImage 197, 716-741 [10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.08.035]
Cyto- and receptor architectonic mapping of the human brain
Handbook of Clinical Neurology 150: 355-387
Multireceptor fingerprints in progressive supranuclear palsy
Alzheimer's Research & Therapy 9: 28
Multiple transmitter receptors in regions and layers of the human cerebral cortex
Frontiers in Neuroanatomy 11:78
Multi-receptor analysis in human neocortex reveals complex alterations of receptor ligand binding in focal epilepsies
Epilepsia 53: 1987-1997
Receptor mapping: architecture of the human cerebral cortex
Current Opinion in Neurology 22(4): 331-339
Cyto-, myelo-, and receptor architectonics of the human parietal cortex
NeuroImage 14: 8-20