Kobe Journal of Medical Sciences, 1998

ＴI: Alteration of the GABAergic neuronal system of the retina and superior colliculus in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rat.

AU: Honda-M; Inoue-M; Okada-Y; Yamamoto-M

AD: Department of Physiology, Kobe University School of Medicine.

SO: Kobe-J-Med-Sci. 1998 Feb; 44(1): 1-8

ISSN: 0023-2513

PY: 1998

LA: ENGLISH

CP: JAPAN

AB: Diabetes mellitus (DM) often causes neural dysfunctions, including visual disorders. To investigate the effect of hyperglycemia on the visual system, we studied the metabolism of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a major inhibitory neurotransmitter that has an important role in visual functions. We determined the GABA content and activities of glutamate decarboxylase (GAD) and GABA transaminase (GABA-T) in the retina and superior colliculus (SC) in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced DM rats. The GABA content and activities of GAD and GABA-T were decreased in the retinas of STZ-treated rats. The GABA content and GAD activity were reduced in the SC of STZ-treated rats, whereas GABA-T activity showed no marked change. This GABA reduction in the diabetes may be correlated with visual dysfunctions.