Chunk #107 — 3 Neuropeptide Roles in Acute and Chronic Alcohol Actions — 3.1 Corticotropin-Releasing Factor — 3.1.3 Corticotropin-Releasing Factor Actions in the Bed Nucleus of the Stria Terminalis
BNST (Olive et al. 2002). Interactions between CRF and GABAergic transmission in BNST have been reported to play a role in regulating stress and anxiety (Kash and Winder 2006). In this study the actions of CRF on GABAergic transmission in the ventrolateral region of the BNST (vlBNST) were examined. This region projects to both the VTA (Georges and Aston-Jones 2002) and the PVN of the hypothalamus (Cullinan et al. 1993), thus providing a point of access to both reward and stress pathways. Using whole-cell recordings in a BNST slice preparation, Kash et al. found that CRF enhances GABAergic transmission. Their pharmacological and genetic experiments suggest that CRF and urocortin CRF enhance postsynaptic responses to GABA through activation of the CRF1R.
