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ABSTRACT A subset of glutamate receptors that are specifically sensitive to the glutamate analog _N_-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) are molecular coincidence detectors, necessary for
activity-dependent processes of neurodevelopment and in sensory and cognitive functions. The activity of these receptors is modulated by the endogenous amino acid D-serine, but the extent to
which D-serine is necessary for the normal development and function of the mammalian nervous system was previously unknown. Decreased signaling at NMDA receptors has been implicated in the
pathophysiology of schizophrenia based on pharmacological evidence, and several human genes related to D-serine metabolism and glutamatergic neurotransmission have been implicated in the
etiology of schizophrenia. Here we show that genetically modified mice lacking the ability to produce D-serine endogenously have profoundly altered glutamatergic neurotransmission, and
relatively subtle but significant behavioral abnormalities that reflect hyperactivity and impaired spatial memory, and that are consistent with elevated anxiety. Access through your
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William Carlezon, Jonathan Picker and Uwe Rudolph for helpful discussions and the use of equipment. We thank Joanne Berger-Sweeney, Paul Ardayfio, Amy Lawson-Yuen and Kiersten Smith for
helpful discussions, Julia Dewald and Julie Kurek for assistance in behavioral experiments, and Jiamin Feng for animal colony maintenance and genotyping. We thank Hermann Wolosker for
anti-SR antibody. This work was supported by the United States National Institutes of Health under grant numbers 2 P50 MH06045-07A1 (JTC), MH051290 (JTC), MH18501 (SHS), and NS37483 (NL),
research scientist award DA00074 (SHS) and training grant number 5T32 AG00222-14 (ACB), by a NARSAD Senior Investigator Award (JTC), and by the Canadian Institutes on Health Research (CIHR)
under grant number MPO-79360 (RB) and a new investigator award (RB). AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA, USA A C
Basu, L Han, M A Benneyworth, M P Froimowitz, N Lange & J T Coyle * Laboratory for Psychiatric and Molecular Neuroscience, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA A C Basu, L Han, M A
Benneyworth & J T Coyle * Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, CA, USA G E Tsai & Z I Jiang * Ottawa Health Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada C-L Ma & R Bergeron * Solomon
H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA J T Ehmsen, A K Mustafa & S H Snyder * Neurostatistics Laboratory, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA M
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AUTHOR Correspondence to J T Coyle. RIGHTS AND PERMISSIONS Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE Basu, A., Tsai, G., Ma, CL. _et al._ Targeted disruption of serine
racemase affects glutamatergic neurotransmission and behavior. _Mol Psychiatry_ 14, 719–727 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2008.130 Download citation * Received: 23 June 2008 * Revised:
24 October 2008 * Accepted: 10 November 2008 * Published: 09 December 2008 * Issue Date: July 2009 * DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2008.130 SHARE THIS ARTICLE Anyone you share the
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Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative KEYWORDS * glutamate * schizophrenia * D-serine * NMDA receptor