New roles for metabotropic glutamate receptor signaling in the physiology and pathology of dopamine neurons

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) modulate the activity of neurons in many ways on both short and long timescales. These receptors initiate intracellular signaling cascades that can activate ion channels, suppress neurotransmitter release, mobilize calcium release from stores, promote gene transcription, increase or decrease adenylyl cyclase activity, and perform many other functions. Therefore the comprehensive result of activating a single GPCR is not straightforward, and will depend on the context in which that receptor was stimulated. The goal of the work presented here was to gain a better understanding of how the intracellular signaling cascade generated by group I metabotropic glutamate receptors functions physiologically and pathologically within dopamine neurons.