N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor subunit GluN2B

The N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor subunit GluN2B, also known as NR2B or by its gene name GRIN2B, is a critical component of NMDA-type glutamate receptors. These receptors are ligand-gated ion channels that mediate a calcium-permeable component of excitatory neurotransmission in the central nervous system. The GluN2B subunit is one of several possible NMDA receptor subunits and plays a key role in determining the biophysical and pharmacological properties of the receptor complex. GluN2B is implicated in learning, memory formation, synaptic plasticity processes, feeding behaviors, mood regulation, neurodevelopmental disorders, neurodegeneration, depression-like behaviors, rapid antidepressant effects of ketamine, and amyloid beta-induced synaptic loss in Alzheimer’s disease models. Recent evidence suggests that some functions mediated by this receptor do not require ion flux ('metabotropic' signaling), including forms of LTD induced without actual channel opening. Ifenprodil is a well-known selective antagonist.

Other names

GRIN2BNR2BNR3NRIIbHNR3epsilon 22

Antagonism (ifenprodil); rapid antidepressant effects (ketamine)