• BMB Reports
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• v.56 no.10
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• pp.527-536
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• 2023

Serotonin receptors, also known as 5-HT receptors, belong to the G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) superfamily. They mediate the effects of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that plays a key role in a wide range of functions including mood regulation, cognition and appetite. The functions of serotonin are mediated by a family of 5-HT receptors including 12 GPCRs belonging to six major families: 5-HT₁, 5-HT₂, 5-HT₄, 5-HT₅, 5-HT₆ and 5-HT₇. Despite their distinct characteristics and functions, these receptors' subtypes share common structural features and signaling mechanisms. Understanding the structure, functions and pharmacology of the serotonin receptor family is essential for unraveling the complexities of serotonin signaling and developing targeted therapeutics for neuropsychiatric disorders. However, developing drugs that selectively target specific receptor subtypes is challenging due to the structural similarities in their orthosteric binding sites. This review focuses on the recent advancements in the structural studies of 5-HT receptors, highlighting the key structural features of each subtype and shedding light on their potential as targets for mental health and neurological disorders (such as depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and migraine) drugs.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.65-70
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• 2012

Synaptic long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) have been studied as mechanisms of ocular dominance plasticity in the rat visual cortex. Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) inhibits the induction of LTP and LTD during the critical period of the rat visual cortex (postnatal 3~5 weeks). However, in adult rats, the increase in 5-HT level in the brain by the administration of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) fluoxetine reinstates ocular dominance plasticity and LTP in the visual cortex. Here, we investigated the effect of 5-HT on the induction of LTP in the visual cortex obtained from 3- to 10-week-old rats. Field potentials in layer 2/3, evoked by the stimulation of underlying layer 4, was potentiated by theta-burst stimulation (TBS) in 3- and 5-weekold rats, then declined to the baseline level with aging to 10 weeks. Whereas 5-HT inhibited the induction of LTP in 5-week-old rats, it reinstated the induction of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDA)-dependent LTP in 8- and 10-week-old rats. Moreover, the selective SSRI citalopram reinstated LTP. The potentiating effect of 5-HT at 8 weeks of age was mediated by the activation of 5-$HT_2$ receptors, but not by the activation of either 5-$HT_{1A}$ or 5-$HT_3$ receptors. These results suggested that the effect of 5-HT on the induction of LTP switches from inhibitory in young rats to facilitatory in adult rats.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.171-179
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• 1996

To investigate the involvement of $5-HT_{2A}/ 5-HT_{2C} receptors in the developmental toxicity of cocaine in rats, mianserin (2.5 mg/kg), a $5-HT_{2A}/5-HT_{2C}$ receptor antagonist, and/or cocaine HCl (45 mg/kg) were administered intraperitoneally (i.p.), during postnatal days (PND) 7-13. Behavioral assessments for the rat pups were done after 100 days of age by using the progressive ratio schedule of reinforcement (FR 1-FR 128, doubled everyday) and cocaine challenge (5, 15 or 30 mg/kg i.p.) upon established FR 32 behavior. Cocaine injected just prior to the FR 32 session suppressed the established FR 32 responding in a dose-dependent manner. The low dose of cocaine did not affect the FR 32 responding, while the high dose of cocaine suppressed it in all experimental groups. However, by the middle dose of cocaine, rats previously received water-cocaine in their early life showed a marked resistance to cocaine-induced behavioral suppression, and this resistance was not observed in rats received both mianserin and cocaine in their early life. These results suggest that $5-HT_{2A}/ 5-HT_{2C}$ receptors may have an important role for the persistently altered behavioral sensitivity to cocaine caused by exposure to cocaine during development.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.1 no.6
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• pp.657-664
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• 1997

The effects of adenosine, adenosine A1 receptor antagonist (DPCPX), or NMDA receptor antagonist (APV) on the spontaneous release of $[^3H]-5-hydroxytryptamine$ ($[^3H]-5-HT$) during normoxic/normoglycemic or hypoxic/hypoglycemic period were studied in the rat hippocampal slices. The hippocampus was obtained from the rat brain and sliced $400\;{\mu}m$ thickness with the tissue slicer. After 30 min's preincubation in the normal buffer, the slices were incubated for 30 min in a buffer containing $[^3H]-5-HT$ ($0.1\;{\mu}M,\;74{\mu}Ci/8\;ml$) for uptake, and washed. To measure the release of $[^3H]-5-HT$ into the buffer, the incubation medium was drained off and refilled every ten minutes through sequence of 14 tubes. Induction of glucose/oxygen deprivation (GOD; medium depleting glucose and gassed with 95% $N_2/5%\;CO_2$) was done in 6th and 7th tube. The radioactivities in each buffer and the tissue were counted using liquid scintillation counter and the results were expressed as a percentage of the total radioactivities. When slices were exposed to GOD for 20 mins, the spontaneous release of $[^3H]-5-HT$ was markedly increased and this increase of $[^3H]-5-HT$ release was blocked by adenosine ($10\;{\mu}M$) or DL-2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid (APV; $30\;{\mu}M$). Adenosine $A_1$ receptor specific antagonist, 8-cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX) exacerbate GOD-induced increase of spontaneous release of $[^3H]-5-HT$. These results suggest that Adenosine may play a role in the GOD-induced spontaneous release of $[^3H]-5-HT$ through adenosine $A_1$ receptor activity.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.40 no.7
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• pp.495-502
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• 2017

The $5-HT_6R$ has been considered as an attractive therapeutic target in the brain due to its exclusive expression in the brain. However, the mechanistic linkage between $5-HT_6Rs$ and brain functions remains poorly understood. Here, we examined the effects of $5-HT_6R$-mediated cell morphological changes using immunocytochemistry, Western blot, and live-cell imaging assays. Our results showed that the activation of $5-HT_6Rs$ caused morphological changes and increased cell surface area in HEK293 cells expressing $5-HT_6Rs$. Treatment with 5-HT specifically increased RhoA-GTP activity without affecting other Rho family proteins, such as Rac1 and Cdc42. Furthermore, live-cell imaging in hippocampal neurons revealed that activation of $5-HT_6Rs$ using a selective agonist, ST1936, increased the density and size of dendritic protrusions along with the activation of RhoA-GTP activity and that both effects were blocked by pretreatment with a selective $5-HT_6R$ antagonist, SB258585. Taken together, our results show that $5-HT_6R$ plays an important role in the regulation of cell morphology via a RhoA-dependent pathway in mammalian cell lines and primary neurons.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.77-83
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• 1993

Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) has been known to have peripheral actions as well as central actions. Recently physiological roles of 5-HT as a central neurotransmitter have been studied in detail and this is a subject of the present study. Plausible central actions mediated by 5-HT receptor seem to be a control of appetite, bring about psychiatric disorders such as anxiety or dementia, and migraine headache. In this study, thirty-five medicinal plants were tested for their antagonistic activities to 5-HT mediated actions. Through the preliminary screening, methanol extracts of three medicinal plants (Saussureae Radix, Sanguisorbae Radix and Xanthii Fructus) were shown to possess relatively specific antagonistic activities to 5-HT mediated ileal contraction over acetylcholine. To luther investigate the central antagonistic activities of the selected plant in vivo, m-chlorophenylpiperazine (mCPP) which is known to be a 5-H $T_{1c}$ receptor agonist was injected to mouse to induce an anxious and/or hypolocomotion states, and also social interaction test, which was based on the method described by File (S.E. File, 1980), was performed to see whether ethylacetate fraction of Sanguisorbae Radix methanol extract possessed a specific anxiolytic activity.y.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Pharmacology
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• 1998.11a
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• pp.170-170
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• 1998

In order to discover new types of 5-hydroxytryptamine antagonists, we have devoted our attention to investigating naturally occurring compounds having anti-5HT activity in vitro. Recently, ${\gamma}$-mangostin [1,3,6,7-tetrahydroxy-2,8-bis(3-methyl-2-bytenyl)-9H-xanthen-9-one] from the fruit hull of Garcinia mangostana Linn has been shown to be a selective antagonist for 5-hydroxytryptamine$_{2A}$ receptors in smooth muscle and platelets. It is of interesting that y-mangostin which does not have a nitrogen atom, possesses marked 5-$HT_{2A}$ receptor blocking activity. The present study was undertaken to investigate the effects of ${\gamma}$-mangostin on central 5-HT receptors by using animal behavioural models. Intracerebronventricular injection of ${\gamma}$-mangostin (10-40n mol/mouse) inhibited 5-fluoro-${\alpha}$-methyltryptamin (5-FMT) (45 mg kg$^{-1}$, i.p.)-induced head-twitch response in mice in the presence or absence of citalopram (5-HT-uptake inhibitor). Neither the 5-FMT- nor the 8-hydroxy-2-( di-n-propylamino )tetralin (5-HT$_{1A}$-agonist)-induced 5-HT syndrome (head weaving and hindlimb abduction) was affected by ${\gamma}$-mangostin. The locomotor activity stimulated by 5-FMT through the activation of at-adrenoceptors did not alter in the presence of ${\gamma}$-mangostin. 5-HT-induced inositol phosphates accumulation in mouse brain slices was abolished by ketanserin. ${\gamma}$-Mangostin caused a concentration-dependent inhibition of the inositol phosphates accumulation and the binding of [$^3H$]-spiperone, a specific 5-$HT_{2A}$ receptor antagonist, to mouse brain membranes. Kinetic analysis of the [$^H3$]-spiperone binding revealed that ${\gamma}$-mangostin increased the $_{d}$ value without affecting the $B_{max}$ value, indicating the mode of the competitive nature of the inhibition by ${\gamma}$-mangostin. These results suggest that ${\gamma}$-mangostin inhibits 5-FMT-induced head-twitch response in mice by blocking 5-$HT_{2A}$ receptors not by blocking the release of 5-HT from the central neurone. ${\gamma}$-Mangostin is a promising 5-$HT_{2A}$ receptors antagonist in the central nervous system.m.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2023

This work studied the inhibitory effect of the combination of benzoate-intercalated hydrotalcite (HT-BZ) and Ce³⁺-loaded clay (Clay-Ce) on carbon steel (CS). HT-BZ was prepared by the co-precipitation method and Clay-Ce was fabricated by a cation exchange reaction. HT-BZ and Clay-Ce were assessed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) coupled with zeta potential measurement. Electrochemical measurements coupled with scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDX) were used for studying the inhibitory action of the mixture of HT-BZ and Clay-Ce on steel electrodes immersed in 0.1 M NaCl. For comparison, the inhibitory effect of HT-BZ or Clay-Ce alone was also evaluated. The results showed that HT-BZ combined with Clay-Ce provided synergistic inhibition of the CS substrate. The mixture of 0.5 g/L HT-BZ + 0.5 g/L Clay-Ce provided 93.5% inhibition efficiency. The protective mechanism of the HT-BZ + Clay-Ce mixture consisted of the reaction of released BZ and Ce³⁺ and the deposition of HT-BZ and Clay-Ce structures on the CS substrate.

• The Journal of Korean Physical Therapy
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.59-66
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• 2011

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of electroacupuncture on pain threshold and 5-HT synthesis in raphe magnus nucleus of dog brain stem following nociception induced by 1% carageenan. Method: Twenty male dogs were randomly divided into two groups, a control group and an electroacupuncture group with the following parameters: ST36, LI11 and SP9 with 120Hz and 0.5mA. The dogs were sacrificed at 30, 60, 90, 120, 150 and 180 min after nociception using 1% carageenan injection into the plantar side of the dog's left leg. The pain threshold was recorded by an Analgesia-meter. After making brain slice sections, the tissues were immunostained with 5-HT antisera (1:2,500). Results: The pain threshold for the electroacupuncture group was higher than for the control group. The number of 5-HT immunoreactive neurons in the electroacupuncture group was greater than that of the control group. Differences between the two groups regarding the number of 5-HT immunoreactive neurons at 30 min and 60 min (p<0.05), at 120 min and 150 min (p<0.01), and at 8 days (p<0.05) were significant. Conclusion: The increases in pain threshold and number of 5-HT immunoreactive neurons in the raphe magnus nucleus of dog brain stem showed that electroacupuncture can attenuate pain transduction through the descending tract.

• Journal of Acupuncture Research
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.51-62
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• 2004

Objective: To investigate the analgesic effect and its serotonergic mechanism, especially related with 5-HTI and 5-HT2 receptor, of electroacupuncture(EA) in the rat model of collagen-induced arthritis(CIA). Methods : Immunization of male Sprague-Dawley rats with bovine type II (C II) collagen emulsified in Freund's incomplete adjuvant, followed by a booster injection 14 days later, leads to development of arthritis in more than 70% of rats by 21 days postinjection. After three weeks of first immunization, EA stimulation(2 Hz, 0.07 mA, 0.3 ms) was delivered into Jogsamni($ST_{36}$) for 30 minutes. Analgesic effect was evaluated by tail flick latency(TFL). We compared the analgesic effect of EA with TFLs between pretreatment of normal saline and pretreatment of spiroxatrine (5-HT1 receptor antagonist, 1mg/kg, intraperitoneal) and spiperone (5-HT2 receptor antagonist, 1 mg/kg, intraperitoneal) in CIA. Results : 1. TFLs were gradually decreased in CIA as increasing severity of arthritis. 2. Jogsamni($ST_{36}$) EA stimulation in CIA increased TFLs and the effect lasted for 60 minutes. 3. Increased TFLs with Jogsamni($ST_{36}$) EA stimulation were inhibited by pretreatment of spiroxatrine and spiperone in CIA. Conclusions : Jogsamni($ST_{36}$) EA showed analgesic effects in CIA The analgesic effects of Jogsamni($ST_{36}$) EA were inhibited by spiroxatrine and spiperone pretreatment. These observations suggest that 5-HT1 and 5-HT2 serotonergic receptor, which involve the release of serotonin neurotransmitter, play an important roles in analgesic mechanism of EA stimulation.