Chronic Changes in Synaptic Responses of Entorhinal and Hippocampal Neurons After Amino-Oxyacetic Acid (AOAA)–Induced Entorhinal Cortical Neuron Loss

1998 ◽  
Vol 80 (6) ◽  
pp. 3031-3046 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. E. Scharfman ◽  
J. H. Goodman ◽  
F. Du ◽  
R. Schwarcz

Scharfman, H. E., J. H. Goodman, F. Du, and R. Schwarcz. Chronic changes in synaptic responses of entorhinal and hippocampal neurons after amino-oxyacetic acid (AOAA)–induced entorhinal neuron loss. J. Neurophysiol. 80: 3031–3046, 1998. Synaptic responses of entorhinal cortical and hippocampal neurons were examined in vivo and in vitro, 1 mo to 1.5 yr after a unilateral entorhinal lesion caused by a focal injection of amino-oxyacetic acid (AOAA). It has been shown previously that injection of AOAA into the medial entorhinal cortex produces cell loss in layer III preferentially. Although behavioral seizures stopped ∼2 h after AOAA treatment, abnormal evoked responses were recorded as long as 1.5 yr later in the entorhinal cortex and hippocampus. In the majority of slices from AOAA-treated rats, responses recorded in the superficial layers of the medial entorhinal cortex to white matter, presubiculum, or parasubiculum stimulation were abnormal. Extracellularly recorded responses to white matter stimulation were prolonged and repetitive in the superficial layers. Intracellular recordings showed that residual principal cells in superficial layers produced prolonged, repetitive excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) and discharges in response to white matter stimulation compared with brief EPSPs and a single discharge in controls. Responses of deep layer neurons of AOAA-treated rats did not differ from controls in their initial synaptic response. However, in a some of these neurons, additional periods of excitatory activity occurred after a delay. Abnormal responses were recorded from slices ipsilateral as well as contralateral to the lesioned hemisphere. Recordings from the entorhinal cortex in vivo were abnormal also, as demonstrated by prolonged and repetitive responses to stimulation of the area CA1/subiculum border. Evoked responses of hippocampal neurons, recorded in vitro or in vivo, demonstrated abnormalities in selected pathways, such as responses of CA3 neurons to hilar stimulation in vitro. There was a deficit in the duration of potentiation of CA1 population spikes in response to repetitive CA3 stimulation in AOAA-treated rats. Theta activity was reduced in amplitude in area CA1 and the dentate gyrus of AOAA-treated rats, although evoked responses to angular bundle stimulation could not be distinguished from controls. The results demonstrate that a preferential lesion of layer III of the entorhinal cortex produces a long-lasting change in evoked and spontaneous activity in parts of the entorhinal cortex and hippocampus. Given the similarity of the lesion produced by AOAA and entorhinal lesions in temporal lobe epileptics, these data support the hypothesis that preferential damage to the entorhinal cortex contributes to long-lasting changes in excitability, which could be relevant to the etiology of temporal lobe epilepsy.

1988 ◽  
Vol 59 (5) ◽  
pp. 1476-1496 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. S. Jones ◽  
U. Heinemann

1. Extracellular recordings were made from slices of hippocampus plus parahippocampal regions maintained in vitro. Field potentials, recorded in the entorhinal cortex after stimulation in the subiculum, resembled those observed in vivo. 2. Washout of magnesium from the slices resulted in paroxysmal events which resembled those occurring during sustained seizures in vivo. These events were greatest in amplitude and duration in layers IV/V of the medial entorhinal cortex and could occur both spontaneously and in response to subicular stimulation. Spontaneous seizure-like events were not prevented by severing the connections between the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex, but much smaller and shorter events occurring in the dentate gyrus were stopped by this manipulation. Both spontaneous and evoked paroxysmal events were blocked by perfusion with the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, DL-2-amino-5-phosphonovalerate (2-AP5). 3. Neurons in layers IV/V were characterized by intracellular recording. Injection of depolarizing current in most cells evoked a train of nondecrementing action potentials with only weak spike frequency accommodation and little or no posttrain after hyperpolarization. 4. A small number of cells displayed burst response when depolarized by positive current. The burst consisted of a slow depolarization with superimposed action potentials which decreased in amplitude and increased in duration during the discharge. The burst was terminated by a strong after hyperpolarization and thereafter, during prolonged current pulses a train of nondecrementing spikes occurred. The burst response remained if the cell was held at hyperpolarized levels but was inactivated by holding the cell at a depolarized level. 5. Depolarizing synaptic potentials could be evoked by stimulation in the subiculum. A delayed and prolonged depolarization clearly decremented with membrane hyperpolarization and, occasionally, increased with depolarization. 6. Washout of magnesium from the slices resulted in an enhancement of the late depolarization and a reversal of its voltage dependence. Eventually a single shock to the subiculum evoked a large all-or-none paroxysmal depolarization associated with a massive increase in membrane conductance. Similar events occurred spontaneously in all cells tested. The paroxysmal depolarizations, both spontaneous and evoked, were rapidly blocked by 2-AP5. 7. It is concluded that medial entorhinal cortical cells possess several intrinsic and synaptic properties which confer an extreme susceptibility to generation of sustained seizure activity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)


2014 ◽  
Vol 369 (1635) ◽  
pp. 20120520 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christoph Schmidt-Hieber ◽  
Michael Häusser

Neurons in the medial entorhinal cortex fire action potentials at regular spatial intervals, creating a striking grid-like pattern of spike rates spanning the whole environment of a navigating animal. This remarkable spatial code may represent a neural map for path integration. Recent advances using patch-clamp recordings from entorhinal cortex neurons in vitro and in vivo have revealed how the microcircuitry in the medial entorhinal cortex may contribute to grid cell firing patterns, and how grid cells may transform synaptic inputs into spike output during firing field crossings. These new findings provide key insights into the ingredients necessary to build a grid cell.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dóra É. Csordás ◽  
Caroline Fischer ◽  
Johannes Nagele ◽  
Martin Stemmler ◽  
Andreas V.M. Herz

AbstractPrincipal neurons in rodent medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) generate high-frequency bursts during natural behavior. While in vitro studies point to potential mechanisms that could support such burst sequences, it remains unclear whether these mechanisms are effective under in-vivo conditions. In this study, we focused on the membrane-potential dynamics immediately following action potentials, as measured in whole-cell recordings from male mice running in virtual corridors (Domnisoru et al., 2013). These afterpotentials consisted either of a hyperpolarization, an extended ramp-like shoulder, or a depolarization reminiscent of depolarizing afterpotentials (DAPs) recorded in vitro in MEC stellate and pyramidal neurons. Next, we correlated the afterpotentials with the cells’ propensity to fire bursts. All DAP cells with known location resided in Layer II, generated bursts, and their inter-spike intervals (ISIs) were typically between five and fifteen milliseconds. The ISI distributions of Layer-II cells without DAPs peaked sharply at around four milliseconds and varied only minimally across that group. This dichotomy in burst behavior is explained by cell-group-specific DAP dynamics. The same two groups of bursting neurons also emerged when we clustered extracellular spike-train autocorrelations measured in real two-dimensional arenas (Latuske et al., 2015). No difference in the spatial coding properties of the grid cells across all three groups was discernible. Layer III neurons were only sparsely bursting and had no DAPs. As various mechanisms for modulating the ion-channels underlying DAPs exist, our results suggest that the temporal features of MEC activity can be altered while maintaining the cells’ spatial tuning characteristics.Significance StatementDepolarizing afterpotentials (DAPs) are frequently observed in principal neurons from slice preparations of rodent medial entorhinal cortex (MEC), but their functional role in vivo is unknown. Analyzing whole-cell data from mice running on virtual tracks, we show that DAPs do occur during behavior. Cells with prominent DAPs are found in Layer II; their inter-spike intervals reflect DAP time-scales. In contrast, neither the rarely bursting cells in Layer III, nor the high-frequency bursters in Layer II, have a DAP. Extracellular recordings from mice exploring real two-dimensional arenas demonstrate that grid cells within these three groups have rather similar spatial coding properties. We conclude that DAPs shape the temporal but not the spatial response characteristics of principal neurons in MEC.Author contributionsAll authors designed research. DÉC, CF, and JN performed research and analyzed data (equal contribution). AVMH wrote and edited the paper with support from MS and the other authors.


1997 ◽  
Vol 77 (5) ◽  
pp. 2661-2676 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chang-Qing Kao ◽  
Douglas A. Coulter

Kao, Chang-Qing and Douglas A. Coulter. Physiology and pharmacology of corticothalamic stimulation-evoked responses in rat somatosensory thalamic neurons in vitro. J. Neurophysiol. 77: 2661–2676, 1997. Whole cell current- and voltage-clamp recording techniques were employed in a rat thalamocortical slice preparation to characterize corticothalamic stimulation-evoked responses in thalamic neurons. Three types of corticothalamic stimulation-evoked responses were observed in thalamic neurons. Of thalamic neurons, 57% responded to corticothalamic stimulation with purely excitatory synaptic responses, whereas 27% had inhibitory synaptic responses and 16% had mixed excitatory/inhibitory responses. This suggested corticothalamic activation of multiple distinct synaptic circuits, presumably involving both nucleus reticularis thalami (NRT) and thalamus, because the rat ventrobasal complex is virtually devoid of GABAergic interneurons. Corticothalamic-stimulation-evoked excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) were predominantly slow rising currents that showed nonlinear voltage dependence, characteristics of an N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA)-receptor-mediated synaptic current. These slow rising EPSCs were blocked by the NMDA antagonist 2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid (APV). A minority of corticothalamic EPSCs had faster kinetics, and were blocked by 6-cyano-7 nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (CNQX). Corticothalamic stimulation of varying frequency optimally activated burst responses in thalamic neurons at low frequencies (3–6 Hz). The optimal 3- to 6-Hz response was reduced by ethosuximide, by APV, and by detaching the neocortex from the thalamocortical slice, suggesting that T current, NMDA receptors, and neocortical properties all contributed to generation of this 3- to 6-Hz frequency preference. In contrast to corticothalamic EPSCs, medial-thalamic-stimulation-evoked responses consisted of fast CNQX-sensitive EPSCs that were predominantly voltage insensitive, with no 3- to 6-Hz frequency preference. In thalamic neurons in which corticothalamic stimulation evoked predominantly inhibitory synaptic responses, this inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP) had early and late phases, often followed by a rebound burst. The early IPSP reversed at −95 mV and was bicuculline sensitive, whereas the late IPSP reversed at −113 mV and was blocked by the γ-aminobutyric acid-B (GABAB) antagonist 3- N[1-(S)-(3,4-dic h l o r o p h e n y l ) e t h y l ] a m i n o - 2 - ( S ) - h y d r o x y p r o p y l - P - b e n z y l phoshinic acid (CGP-55845A). In thalamic neurons in which corticothalamic stimulation evoked a mixed excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP)/IPSP response, repetitive corticothalamic stimulation rapidly reduced IPSPs and enhanced EPSPs at higher frequencies. This resulted in burst firing being triggered in these mixed response neurons at frequencies >6 Hz. Corticothalamic feedback onto thalamic relay neurons activated diverse responses due to differing relative activation of NRT and “feedforward” inhibitory responses. These multiple in vitro corticothalamic responses differ from responses encountered in other in vitro thalamic preparations lacking a synaptically connected neocortex, but are similar to results evident in thalamic neurons in response to cortical stimulation in vivo. In addition, the thalamocortical 3- to 6-Hz frequency preference was conserved, suggesting that many factors critical for this emergent property of the thalamocortical system are maintained in vitro.


2020 ◽  
Vol 54 (01) ◽  
pp. 37-46
Author(s):  
Kristina Friedland ◽  
Giacomo Silani ◽  
Anita Schuwald ◽  
Carola Stockburger ◽  
Egon Koch ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Silexan, a special essential oil from flowering tops of lavandula angustifolia, is used to treat subsyndromal anxiety disorders. In a recent clinical trial, Silexan also showed antidepressant effects in patients suffering from mixed anxiety-depression (ICD-10 F41.2). Since preclinical data explaining antidepressant properties of Silexan are missing, we decided to investigate if Silexan also shows antidepressant-like effects in vitro as well as in vivo models. Methods We used the forced swimming test (FST) in rats as a simple behavioral test indicative of antidepressant activity in vivo. As environmental events and other risk factors contribute to depression through converging molecular and cellular mechanisms that disrupt neuronal function and morphology—resulting in dysfunction of the circuitry that is essential for mood regulation and cognitive function—we investigated the neurotrophic properties of Silexan in neuronal cell lines and primary hippocampal neurons. Results The antidepressant activity of Silexan (30 mg/kg BW) in the FST was comparable to the tricyclic antidepressant imipramine (20 mg/kg BW) after 9-day treatment. Silexan triggered neurite outgrowth and synaptogenesis in 2 different neuronal cell models and led to a significant increase in synaptogenesis in primary hippocampal neurons. Silexan led to a significant phosphorylation of protein kinase A and subsequent CREB phosphorylation. Conclusion Taken together, Silexan demonstrates antidepressant-like effects in cellular as well as animal models for antidepressant activity. Therefore, our data provides preclinical evidence for the clinical antidepressant effects of Silexan in patients with mixed depression and anxiety.


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. P598-P598
Author(s):  
Heechul Jun ◽  
Shogo Soma ◽  
Ananya Dasgupta ◽  
Kei Igarashi

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bin Qiu ◽  
Zhaohui Zhong ◽  
Shawn Righter ◽  
Yuxue Xu ◽  
Jun Wang ◽  
...  

Abstract FK506-binding protein 51 (encoded by Fkpb51) has been associated with stress-related mental illness. To identify its function, we studied the morphological consequences of Fkbp51 deletion. Artificial Intelligence-assist morphological analysis identified that Fkbp51 knock-out (KO) mice possess more elongated CA and DG but shorter in height in coronal section when compared to WT. Primary cultured Fkbp51 KO hippocampal neurons were shown to exhibit larger dendritic outgrowth than wild-type (WT) controls, pharmacological manipulation experiments suggest that this may occur through regulation of microtubule-associated protein. Both in vitro primary culture and in vivo labeling support that FKBP51 regulates microtubule-associated protein expression. Furthermore, in the absence of differences in mRNA expression, Fkbp51 KO hippocampus exhibited decreases in βIII-tubulin, MAP2, and Tau protein levels, but a greater than 2.5-fold increase in Parkin protein. Overexpression and knock-down FKBP51 demonstrated that FKBP51 negatively regulates Parkin in a dose-dependent and ubiquitin-mediated manner. These results indicate a potential novel post-translational regulatory of Parkin by FKBP51 and significance of their interaction on disease onset.


2010 ◽  
Vol 108 (1) ◽  
pp. 379-384 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shiva K. Tyagarajan ◽  
Himanish Ghosh ◽  
Gonzalo E. Yévenes ◽  
Irina Nikonenko ◽  
Claire Ebeling ◽  
...  

Postsynaptic scaffolding proteins ensure efficient neurotransmission by anchoring receptors and signaling molecules in synapse-specific subcellular domains. In turn, posttranslational modifications of scaffolding proteins contribute to synaptic plasticity by remodeling the postsynaptic apparatus. Though these mechanisms are operant in glutamatergic synapses, little is known about regulation of GABAergic synapses, which mediate inhibitory transmission in the CNS. Here, we focused on gephyrin, the main scaffolding protein of GABAergic synapses. We identify a unique phosphorylation site in gephyrin, Ser270, targeted by glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK3β) to modulate GABAergic transmission. Abolishing Ser270 phosphorylation increased the density of gephyrin clusters and the frequency of miniature GABAergic postsynaptic currents in cultured hippocampal neurons. Enhanced, phosphorylation-dependent gephyrin clustering was also induced in vitro and in vivo with lithium chloride. Lithium is a GSK3β inhibitor used therapeutically as mood-stabilizing drug, which underscores the relevance of this posttranslational modification for synaptic plasticity. Conversely, we show that gephyrin availability for postsynaptic clustering is limited by Ca2+-dependent gephyrin cleavage by the cysteine protease calpain-1. Together, these findings identify gephyrin as synaptogenic molecule regulating GABAergic synaptic plasticity, likely contributing to the therapeutic action of lithium.


2020 ◽  
Vol 133 (24) ◽  
pp. jcs247841 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Martín-Rodríguez ◽  
Minseok Song ◽  
Begoña Anta ◽  
Francisco J. González-Calvo ◽  
Rubén Deogracias ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTUbiquitylation of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) regulates both the levels and functions of these receptors. The neurotrophin receptor TrkB (also known as NTRK2), a RTK, is ubiquitylated upon activation by brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) binding. Although TrkB ubiquitylation has been demonstrated, there is a lack of knowledge regarding the precise repertoire of proteins that regulates TrkB ubiquitylation. Here, we provide mechanistic evidence indicating that ubiquitin carboxyl-terminal hydrolase 8 (USP8) modulates BDNF- and TrkB-dependent neuronal differentiation. USP8 binds to the C-terminus of TrkB using its microtubule-interacting domain (MIT). Immunopurified USP8 deubiquitylates TrkB in vitro, whereas knockdown of USP8 results in enhanced ubiquitylation of TrkB upon BDNF treatment in neurons. As a consequence of USP8 depletion, TrkB levels and its activation are reduced. Moreover, USP8 protein regulates the differentiation and correct BDNF-dependent dendritic formation of hippocampal neurons in vitro and in vivo. We conclude that USP8 positively regulates the levels and activation of TrkB, modulating BDNF-dependent neuronal differentiation.This article has an associated First Person interview with the first author of the paper.


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