Group I mGluRs Increase Excitability of Hippocampal CA1 Pyramidal Neurons by a PLC-Independent Mechanism

2002 ◽  
Vol 88 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Ireland ◽  
Wickliffe C. Abraham

Previous studies have implicated phospholipase C (PLC)-linked Group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) in regulating the excitability of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons. We used intracellular recordings from rat hippocampal slices and specific antagonists to examine in more detail the mGluR receptor subtypes and signal transduction mechanisms underlying this effect. Application of the Group I mGluR agonist (RS)-3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine (DHPG) suppressed slow- and medium-duration afterhyperpolarizations (s- and mAHP) and caused a consequent increase in cell excitability as well as a depolarization of the membrane and an increase in input resistance. Interestingly, with the exception of the suppression of the mAHP, these effects were persistent, and in the case of the sAHP lasting for more than 1 h of drug washout. Preincubation with the specific mGluR5 antagonist, 2-methyl-6-(phenylethynyl)-pyridine (MPEP), reduced but did not completely prevent the effects of DHPG. However, preincubation with both MPEP and the mGluR1 antagonist LY367385 completely prevented the DHPG-induced changes. These results demonstrate that the DHPG-induced changes are mediated partly by mGluR5 and partly by mGluR1. Because Group I mGluRs are linked to PLC via G-protein activation, we also investigated pathways downstream of PLC activation, using chelerythrine and cyclopiazonic acid to block protein kinase C (PKC) and inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate-(IP3)-activated Ca2+ stores, respectively. Neither inhibitor affected the DHPG-induced suppression of the sAHP or the increase in excitability nor did an inhibitor of PLC itself, U-73122. Taken together, these results argue that in CA1 pyramidal cells in the adult rat, DHPG activates mGluRs of both the mGluR5 and mGluR1 subtypes, causing a long-lasting suppression of the sAHP and a consequent persistent increase in excitability via a PLC-, PKC-, and IP3-independent transduction pathway.

1985 ◽  
Vol 63 (7) ◽  
pp. 872-878 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. W. Oliver ◽  
J. J. Miller

To determine the alterations in cellular function which may contribute to the chronic predisposition of neuronal tissue to epileptiform activity, the membrane properties and inhibitory processes of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells were investigated using in vitro slices prepared from commissural-kindled rats. No changes were observed in resting membrane potential, input resistance, spike amplitude, and membrane time constant of "kindled" CA1 pyramidal neurons when compared with controls. There were also no differences between control and kindled preparations in the amplitude of recurrent inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSP) and in the duration of inhibition produced by either alvear (Alv) or stratum radiatum (SR) stimulation. Irrespective of group, repetitive stimulation of the Alv reduced the amplitude of the recurrent IPSP but failed to induce seizurelike activity. On the other hand, repetitive stimulation of SR frequently produced a neuronal burst discharge even though the duration and to some extent the amplitude of orthodromic inhibition was increased. On the basis of these data, it may be suggested that chronic changes in CA1 pyramidal cell membrane properties and transient reductions of inhibitory processes do not underlie the enhanced sensitivity of these neurons to seizure activity associated with kindling.


1997 ◽  
Vol 78 (1) ◽  
pp. 539-544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa R. Merlin ◽  
Robert K. S. Wong

Merlin, Lisa R. and Robert K. S. Wong. Role of group I metabotropic glutamate receptors in the patterning of epileptiform activities in vitro. J. Neurophysiol. 78: 539–544, 1997. In guinea pig hippocampal slices, picrotoxin elicited spontaneous epileptiform bursts 300–550 ms in duration. Additional application of ( R,S)-3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine or ( S)-3-hydroxyphenylglycine, agonists specific for group I metabotropic glutamate receptors(mGluRs), or (1 S,3 R)-1-aminocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylicacid, a broad-spectrum mGluR agonist, converted picrotoxin-induced interictal bursts into prolonged discharges measured on the order of seconds. The prolonged discharges induced by selective group I mGluR agonist continued to be produced for hours after agonist removal. The antagonists ( S)-4-carboxyphenylglycine and (+)-α-methyl-4-carboxyphenylglycine had no effect on the duration of picrotoxin-induced interictal bursts. However, after agonist exposure, the persistent prolonged discharges occurring in the absence of agonist were reversibly suppressed by the antagonists, suggesting that the activity is maintained via endogenous activation of group I mGluRs by synaptically released glutamate. Our results suggest that, under some conditions, activation of group I mGluRs produces long-lasting enhancement of synaptic responses, mediated at least in part by autopotentiation of the group I mGluR response itself, which may result in the production of seizure discharges and contribute to epileptogenesis.


2004 ◽  
Vol 92 (5) ◽  
pp. 2811-2819 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Ireland ◽  
Diane Guevremont ◽  
Joanna M. Williams ◽  
Wickliffe C. Abraham

Group I metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR) agonists increase the excitability of hippocampal CAl pyramidal neurons via depression of the postspike afterhyperpolarization. In adult rats, this is mediated by both mGluR1 and -5, but the signal transduction processes involved are unknown. In this study, we investigated whether altered levels of tyrosine phosphorylation of proteins are involved in the depression of the slow-duration afterhyperpolarization (sAHP) by the Group I mGluR agonist (RS)-3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine (DHPG) in CA1 pyramidal neurons of rat hippocampal slices. Preincubation with the tyrosine kinase inhibitors lavendustin A or genistein, or the Src-specific inhibitor 3-(4-chlorophenyl) 1-(1,1-dimethylethyl)-1 H-pyrazolo[3,4-d]pyrimidin-4-amine (PP2), did not inhibit the DHPG-mediated depression of the sAHP. However, preincubation with the tyrosine phosphatase inhibitor orthovanadate reduced the effects of DHPG. This effect of orthovanadate was prevented by simultaneous inhibition of tyrosine kinases with lavendustin A. Selective activation of either mGluR1 or -5 by application of DHPG plus either the mGluR5 antagonist 2-methyl-6-(phenylethynyl)pyridine (MPEP) or the mGluR1 antagonist (S)-(+)-α-amino-4-carboxy-2-methylbenzeneacetic acid (LY367385) demonstrated that the effect of inhibiting tyrosine phosphatases is not specific to either subtype of mGluR. These results suggest that the depression of the sAHP induced by activation of mGluR1 and -5 is gated by a balance between tyrosine phosphorylation and dephosphorylation.


1987 ◽  
Vol 65 (5) ◽  
pp. 842-846 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter W. Kujtan ◽  
Peter L. Carlen

The dose-dependent effects of phencyclidine were examined in guinea pig hippocampal slices using intracellular and extracellular recordings. Orthodromically evoked population potentials from the CA1 cell body layer were enhanced by low doses (0.2–0.4 μM) and depressed by high doses (0.01–10 mM). Medium doses of the drug (2.0–10.0 μM) showed little effect. Intracellular recordings from CA1 pyramidal neurons gave similar dose-dependent results. Low doses increased spontaneous firing rates and caused silent cells to fire. Medium doses both increased and decreased firing rates, whereas high doses depressed firing rates. Large transient depolarizing shifts were seen in some phencyclidine-treated cells at medium and high doses. Phencyclidine effects took 15–30 min to develop and were only partially reversible after a washout of up to 1 h.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 706
Author(s):  
Wen-Bing Chen ◽  
Jiang Chen ◽  
Zi-Yang Liu ◽  
Bin Luo ◽  
Tian Zhou ◽  
...  

Metformin (Met) is a first-line drug for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Numerous studies have shown that Met exerts beneficial effects on a variety of neurological disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD) and Huntington’s disease (HD). However, it is still largely unclear how Met acts on neurons. Here, by treating acute hippocampal slices with Met (1 μM and 10 μM) and recording synaptic transmission as well as neuronal excitability of CA1 pyramidal neurons, we found that Met treatments significantly increased the frequency of miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents (mEPSCs), but not amplitude. Neither frequency nor amplitude of miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents (mIPSCs) were changed with Met treatments. Analysis of paired-pulse ratios (PPR) demonstrates that enhanced presynaptic glutamate release from terminals innervating CA1 hippocampal pyramidal neurons, while excitability of CA1 pyramidal neurons was not altered. Our results suggest that Met preferentially increases glutamatergic rather than GABAergic transmission in hippocampal CA1, providing a new insight on how Met acts on neurons.


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