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Selection of a pure cerebellar granule cell culture by kainate treatment

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Abstract

Chronic exposure of dissociated cerebellar cultures to 50μM kainate results in a complete loss of [3H]-GABA release which is a marker of GABAergic interneurons. No loss of granule cells was found and the glutamatergic nature of the granule cells appeared unaltered by the kainate treatment, since evoked release of [3H]-d-aspartate was maintained after kainate exposure. Glial cells in such cultures are virtually eliminated by treatment with an antimitotic such as cytarabin. In consequence a pure culture of cerebellar granule cells virtually free of stellate, basket and glial cells may be obtained by a combined chronic treatment of the cultures with kainate and cytarabin.

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Drejer, J., Schousboe, A. Selection of a pure cerebellar granule cell culture by kainate treatment. Neurochem Res 14, 751–754 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00964953

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