Glutamate Counteracts Dopamine/PKA Signaling via Dephosphorylation of DARPP-32 Ser-97 and Alteration of Its Cytonuclear Distribution.

The interaction of glutamate and dopamine in the striatum is heavily dependent on signaling pathways that converge on the regulatory protein DARPP-32. The efficacy of dopamine/D1 receptor/PKA signaling is regulated by DARPP-32 phosphorylated at Thr-34 (the PKA site), a process that inhibits protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) and potentiates PKA action. Activation of dopamine/D1receptor/PKA signaling also leads to dephosphorylation of DARPP-32 at Ser-97 (the CK2 site), leading to localization of phospho-Thr-34 DARPP-32 in the nucleus where it also inhibits PP1. In this study the role of glutamate in the regulation of DARPP-32 phosphorylation at four major sites was further investigated. Experiments using striatal slices revealed that glutamate decreased the phosphorylation states of DARPP-32 at Ser-97 as well as Thr-34, Thr-75, and Ser-130 by activating NMDA or AMPA receptors in both direct and indirect pathway striatal neurons. The effect of glutamate in decreasing Ser-97 phosphorylation was mediated by activation of PP2A. In vitro phosphatase assays indicated that the PP2A/PR72 heterotrimer complex was likely responsible for glutamate/Ca-regulated dephosphorylation of DARPP-32 at Ser-97. As a consequence of Ser-97 dephosphorylation, glutamate induced the nuclear localization in cultured striatal neurons of dephospho-Thr-34/dephospho-Ser-97 DARPP-32. It also reduced PKA-dependent DARPP-32 signaling in slices and in vivo. Taken together, the results suggest that by inducing dephosphorylation of DARPP-32 at Ser-97 and altering its cytonuclear distribution, glutamate may counteract dopamine/D1 receptor/PKA signaling at multiple cellular levels.