Metalloneurochemistry is the study of metal ion function in the brain and nervous system at the molecular level. Zinc is an important metal ion in neuroscience. Its concentration in brain is in part controlled by metallothionein. Mobile zinc is released in the hippocampus at glutamatergic synapses as well as the auditory, visual, and olfactory regions of the cortex. Fluorescent sensors are available to help track such zinc release. Capitalizing on the facile and modular nature of peptide synthesis, we have devised ratiometric sensors for quantitative measurements. With the use of a P9K peptide as a rigid scaffold, blue/green and green/red ratiometric probes for mobile zinc have been applied to quantitate mobile zinc levels in cell lysates and, in collaboration with the Tzounopoulos group at the University of Pittsburgh, live slices of the dorsal cochlear nucleus. This work was supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.

Metalloneurochemistry: An overview and mobile zinc signaling in sensory perception

248th National Meeting (2014)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.