Progesterone blocks multiple routes of ion flux
- 31 October 2011
- journal article
- Published by Elsevier BV in Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience
- Vol. 48 (2), 137-141
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mcn.2011.07.002
Abstract
The administration of progesterone as a neuroprotective agent following traumatic brain injury has recently entered phase III clinical trials. Previous work has demonstrated that therapeutic concentrations of progesterone decrease excitotoxicity through direct inhibition of voltage-gated calcium channels, an action independent of the nuclear progesterone receptor. Here we report using cultured rat striatal neurons that these same concentrations of progesterone also block voltage-gated potassium channels, sodium channels and GABA(A) currents. The actions of progesterone act at the surface membrane of neurons in a steroid specific, voltage-independent, concentration-dependent manner. Notably, these broad actions of progesterone on ion channel and neurotransmitter receptor function mirror those of dihydropyridines, and indicate potential shared mechanisms of action, the prospective of additional therapeutic applications, and possibly, untoward effects.Keywords
Funding Information
- National Institutes of Health (NS41302)
- Core Funding (NS062158)
- IRACDA Post-Doctoral Fellowship (GM074628)
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