Abstract
The intricate process of neuronal differentiation integrates multiple signals to induce transcriptional, morphological, and electrophysiological changes that reshape the properties of neural precursor cells during their maturation and migration process. An increasing number of neurotransmitters and biomolecules have been identified as molecular signals that trigger and guide this process. In this sense, taurine, a sulfur-containing, non-essential amino acid widely expressed in the mammal brain, modulates the neuronal differentiation process. In this study, we describe the effect of taurine acting via the ionotropic GABAA receptor and the metabotropic GABAB receptor on the neuronal differentiation and electrophysiological properties of precursor cells derived from the subventricular zone of the mouse brain. Taurine stimulates the number of neurites and favors the dendritic complexity of the neural precursor cells, accompanied by changes in the somatic input resistance and the strength of inward and outward membranal currents. At the pharmacological level, the blockade of GABAA receptors inhibits these effects, whereas the stimulation of GABAB receptors has no positive effects on the taurine-mediated differentiation process. Strikingly, the blockade of the GABAB receptor with CGP533737 stimulates neurite outgrowth, dendritic complexity, and membranal current kinetics of neural precursor cells. The effects of taurine on the differentiation process involve Ca2+ mobilization and the activation of intracellular signaling cascades since chelation of intracellular calcium with BAPTA-AM, and inhibition of the CaMKII, ERK1/2, and Src kinase inhibits the neurite outgrowth of neural precursor cells of the subventricular zone.