Effects of a Gut Microbiome Toxin, p-Cresol, on the Contents of the NMDA2B Receptor Subunit in the Nucl. Accumbens of Rats

The effects of p-cresol on the levels of subunit 2RB of NMDA receptors and also of AMPA and GABAA receptors in the nucl. accumbens (NAc) of rats were studied. As was found, the content of the NR2B subunit of NMDA glutamate receptors is increased in p-cresol-treated rats, and this elevation is abrogated after intranasal administration of oxytocin. These effects of oxytocin were partly reversed after i.p. injections of naltrexone. We suggest that interplay between mesolimbic glutamatergic, oxytocinergic, and opioidergic systems in the NAc may be important in the development of p-cresol-dependent neurological disorders.