Glutamatergic neuron markers
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Your guide to glutamatergic neuron markers
Glutamatergic neurons produce glutamate, which is one of the most common excitatory neurotransmitters in the central nervous system (CNS).
It plays a critical role in fundamental processes, such as learning, cognition, and memory, and dysregulation of glutamatergic transmission can result in several neurological conditions.
There are several well-characterized glutamatergic neuron markers, which can help you identify your neuronal population.
- Vesicular glutamate transporters 1 and 2 (vGlut1 and vGlut2) markers
- Glutamate [NMDA] receptor subunits 1 and epsilon-2 (NMDAR1 and NMDAR2B) markers
- Glutamate biosynthesis and metabolism markers
You may also be interested in our human iPSC-derived glutamatergic neurons.
Vesicular glutamate transporters 1 and 2 (vGlut1 and vGluT2) markers
Vesicular glutamate transporters transport cytoplasmic glutamate into synaptic vesicles. There are three mammalian glutamate transporters, vGluT1 – VGluT3, which have partially overlapping expression patterns.
vGluT1
vGluT1 is expressed in neuron-rich regions of the brain and is associated with synaptic vesicle membranes.
Zebrafish retina sections stained with anti-vGluT1 (green) (ab77822).
vGluT2
A glutamate transporter that transports cytoplasmic glutamate into vesicles.
Mouse brain tissue sections stained with anti-vGluT2 (ab79157).
Glutamate [NMDA] receptor subunits 1 and epsilon-2 (NMDAR1 and NMDAR2B) markers
NMDA receptors are ion channels that are activated by glutamate and glycine. They play an important role in many neuronal functions, including synaptic plasticity, synaptogenesis, and memory.
NMDAR1
An essential subunit of all NMDA receptors.
Rat cortex stained with anti-NMDAR1 (ab17345).
NMDAR1 modulators
| Product | Activity |
| (+)-MK 801 maleate (Dizocilpine) (ab120027) | Non-competitive NMDAR1 antagonist. ion channel. |
NMDAR1 antagonist. | |
| Eliprodil (ab145971) | Non-competitive specific inhibitor of NMDAR1 and/or NMDAR2B subunits. |
NMDAR2B
Another NMDA receptor subunit. This subunit forms the glutamate binding site on the NMDA receptors.
Mouse cerebral cortex sections stained with anti-NMDAR2B (ab65783).
Browse all NMDAR2B antibodies
NMDAR2B modulators
| Product | Activity |
| NGHVYEKLSSIE (Interfering peptide) (ab120380) | Peptide (agonist) that competes with clathrin adaptor protein (AP-2) binding to NR2B. |
| Eliprodil (ab145971) | Non-competitive specific inhibitor of NMDAR1 and/or NMDAR2B subunits. |
| Gentiopicrin (ab143623) | Downregulates GluN2B-containing NMDA receptors in the NAc. |
| Ro 25-6981 maleate salt (ab120290) | Potent, highly selective, activity-dependent inhibitor of NMDA receptors that contain the NR2B subunit. |
| Ifenprodil hemitartrate (ab120111) | Non-competitive NMDAR2B antagonist acting at the polyamine site. |
Glutaminase
An enzyme catalyzing the deamination of glutamine into glutamate.
Human cerebral cortex tissue labeled with anti-glutaminase (ab156876).
Glutamine synthetase
An enzyme catalyzing the ATP-dependent amidation of glutamate to form glutamine. It is primarily expressed in astrocytes but expression levels rise in neurons in neurodenegerative diseases. When staining for glutamine synthetase, we recommend parallel use of NeuN.
Zebrafish retina sections stained with anti-glutamine synthetase (purple) (ab93439).
References
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- Bhatt, J. M., Prakash, A., Suryavanshi, P. S. & Dravid, S. M. Effect of ifenprodil on GluN1/GluN2B N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor gating. Mol. Pharmacol. 83, 9–21 (2013).
- Fernandes, S. P., Dringen, R., Lawen, A. & Robinson, S. R. Neurones express glutamine synthetase when deprived of glutamine or interaction with astrocytes. J. Neurochem. 114, 1527–36 (2010).
- Fischer, G. et al. Ro 25-6981, a highly potent and selective blocker of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors containing the NR2B subunit. Characterization in vitro. J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther. 283, 1285–92 (1997).
- Kotlinska, J. & Liljequist, S. Oral administration of glycine and polyamine receptor antagonists blocks ethanol withdrawal seizures. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 127, 238–244 (1996).
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- Liu, S.-B. et al. Gentiopicroside attenuates morphine rewarding effect through downregulation of GluN2B receptors in nucleus accumbens. CNS Neurosci. Ther. 18, 652–8 (2012).
- North, W. G., Gao, G., Jensen, A., Memoli, V. A. & Du, J. NMDA receptors are expressed by small-cell lung cancer and are potential targets for effective treatment. Clin. Pharmacol. 2, 31–40 (2010).
- Prybylowski, K. et al. The synaptic localization of NR2B-containing NMDA receptors is controlled by interactions with PDZ proteins and AP-2. Neuron 47, 845–57 (2005).
- Wang, T. & Miller, K. E. Characterization of glutamatergic neurons in the rat atrial intrinsic cardiac ganglia that project to the cardiac ventricular wall. Neuroscience 329, 134–150 (2016).
- Wyss-Coray, T. et al. Prominent neurodegeneration and increased plaque formation in complement-inhibited Alzheimer’s mice. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 99, 10837–10842 (2002).