scholarly journals Cannabinoids Depress Inhibitory Synaptic Inputs Received by Layer 2/3 Pyramidal Neurons of the Neocortex

2002 ◽  
Vol 88 (1) ◽  
pp. 534-539 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Trettel ◽  
Eric S. Levine
Keyword(s):  
Pyramidal Neurons ◽  
Cannabinoid Receptor ◽  
Cell Voltage ◽  
Gaba Release ◽  
Inhibitory Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Presynaptic Site ◽  
Layer 2 ◽  
Kinetics Of

Using whole cell voltage-clamp recordings we investigated the effects of a synthetic cannabinoid (WIN55,212-2) on inhibitory inputs received by layer 2/3 pyramidal neurons in slices of the mouse auditory cortex. Activation of the type 1 cannabinoid receptor (CB1R) with WIN55,212-2 reliably reduced the amplitude of GABAergic inhibitory postsynaptic currents evoked by extracellular stimulation within layer 2/3. The suppression of this inhibition was blocked and reversed by the highly selective CB1R antagonist AM251, confirming a CB1R-mediated inhibition. Pairing evoked inhibitory postsynaptic currents (IPSCs) at short interstimulus intervals while applying WIN55,212-2 resulted in an increase in paired-pulse facilitation suggesting that the probability of GABA release was reduced. A presynaptic site of cannabinoid action was verified by an observed decrease in the frequency with no change in the amplitude or kinetics of action potential–independent postsynaptic currents (mIPSCs). When Cd2+ was added or Ca2+ was omitted from the recording solution, the remaining fraction of Ca2+-independent mIPSCs did not respond to WIN55,212-2. These data suggest that cannabinoids are capable of suppressing the inhibition of neocortical pyramidal neurons by depressing Ca2+-dependent GABA release from local interneurons.

Lack of Depolarization-Induced Suppression of Inhibition (DSI) in Layer 2/3 Interneurons That Receive Cannabinoid-Sensitive Inhibitory Inputs

2007 ◽  
Vol 98 (5) ◽  
pp. 2517-2524 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fouad Lemtiri-Chlieh ◽  
Eric S. Levine
Keyword(s):  
Action Potentials ◽  
Pyramidal Neurons ◽  
Cannabinoid Receptor ◽  
Brain Slices ◽  
Gaba Release ◽  
Synaptic Activity ◽  
Layer 2 ◽  
Fast Spiking ◽  
Whole Cell Recordings

In layer 2/3 of neocortex, brief trains of action potentials in pyramidal neurons (PNs) induce the mobilization of endogenous cannabinoids (eCBs), resulting in a depression of GABA release from the terminals of inhibitory interneurons (INs). This depolarization-induced suppression of inhibition (DSI) is mediated by activation of the type 1 cannabinoid receptor (CB1) on presynaptic terminals of a subset of INs. However, it is not clear whether CB1 receptors are also expressed at synapses between INs, and whether INs can release eCBs in response to depolarization. In the present studies, brain slices containing somatosensory cortex were prepared from 14- to 21-day-old CD-1 mice. Whole cell recordings were obtained from layer 2/3 PNs and from INs classified as regular spiking nonpyramidal, irregular spiking, or fast spiking. For all three classes of INs, the cannabinoid agonist WIN55,212-2 suppressed inhibitory synaptic activity, similar to the effect seen in PNs. In addition, trains of action potentials in PNs resulted in significant DSI. In INs, however, DSI was not seen in any cell type, even with prolonged high-frequency spike trains that produced calcium increases comparable to that seen with DSI induction in PNs. In addition, blocking eCB reuptake with AM404, which enhanced DSI in PNs, failed to unmask any DSI in INs. Thus the lack of DSI in INs does not appear to be due to an insufficient increase in intracellular calcium or enhanced reuptake. These results suggest that layer 2/3 INs receive CB1-expressing inhibitory inputs, but that eCBs are not released by these INs.

Endocannabinoids Mediate Rapid Retrograde Signaling At Interneuron → Pyramidal Neuron Synapses of the Neocortex

2003 ◽  
Vol 89 (4) ◽  
pp. 2334-2338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Trettel ◽  
Eric S. Levine
Keyword(s):  
Pyramidal Neurons ◽  
Cannabinoid Receptor ◽  
Endocannabinoid System ◽  
Gaba Release ◽  
Inhibitory Interneurons ◽  
Strongly Correlated ◽  
Inhibitory Strength ◽  
Activity Dependent ◽  
Whole Cell Recordings

In the neocortex, inhibitory interneurons tightly regulate the firing patterns and integrative properties of pyramidal neurons (PNs). The endocannabinoid system of the neocortex may play an important role in the activity-dependent regulation of inhibitory (i.e., GABAergic) inputs received by PNs. In the present study, using whole cell recordings from layer 2/3 PNs in slices of mouse sensory cortex, we have identified a role for PN-derived endocannabinoids in the control of afferent inhibitory strength. Pairing evoked inhibitory currents with repeated epochs of postsynaptic depolarization led to a transient suppression of inhibition that was induced by a rise in postsynaptic Ca2+ and was expressed as a reduction in presynaptic GABA release. An antagonist (AM251) of the type-1 cannabinoid receptor blocked the depolarization-induced suppression of evoked inhibitory postsynaptic currents (eIPSCs), and the cannabinoid WIN55,212-2 reduced eIPSC amplitude and occluded suppression. The degree of WIN55,212-2-mediated inhibition of eIPSCs was strongly correlated with the magnitude of depolarization-induced suppression of the eIPSCs, suggesting that the WIN-sensitive afferents are suppressed by PN depolarization. Moreover, blocking endocannabinoid uptake with AM404 strongly modulated the kinetics and magnitude of eIPSC suppression. We conclude that the release of endocannabinoids from PNs allows for the postsynaptic control of presynaptic inhibition and could have profound consequences for the integrative properties of neocortical PNs.

Development of GABAA Receptor-Mediated Inhibitory Postsynaptic Currents in Hippocampus

2002 ◽  
Vol 88 (6) ◽  
pp. 3097-3107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew I. Banks ◽  
Jason B. Hardie ◽  
Robert A. Pearce
Keyword(s):  
Developmental Regulation ◽  
Brain Slices ◽  
Pyramidal Cells ◽  
Cell Voltage ◽  
Fold Increase ◽  
Developmental Changes ◽  
Inhibitory Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Age Range ◽  
Kinetics Of

Hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells receive two kinetic classes of GABAA receptor-mediated inhibition: slow dendritic inhibitory postsynaptic currents (GABAA,slow IPSCs) and fast perisomatic (GABAA,fast) IPSCs. These two classes of IPSCs are likely generated by two distinct groups of interneurons, and we have previously shown that the kinetics of the IPSCs have important functional consequences for generating synchronous firing patterns. Here, we studied developmental changes in the properties of GABAA,fast and GABAA,slowspontaneous, miniature, and evoked IPSCs (sIPSCs, mIPSCs, and eIPSCs, respectively) using whole cell voltage-clamp recordings in brain slices from animals aged P10–P35. We found that the rate of GABAA,slow sIPSCs increased by over 70-fold between P11 and P35 (from 0.0017 to 0.12 s−1). Over this same age range, we observed a >3.5-fold increase in the maximal amplitude of GABAA,slow eIPSCs evoked by stratum lacunosum-moleculare (SL-M) stimuli. However, the rate and amplitude of GABAA,slow mIPSCs remained unchanged between P10 and P30, suggesting that the properties of GABAA,slow synapses remained stable over this age range, and that the increase in sIPSC rate and in eIPSC amplitude was due to increased excitability or excitation of GABAA,slow interneurons. This hypothesis was tested using bath application of norepinephrine (NE), which we found at low concentrations (1 μM) selectively increased the rate of GABAA,slow sIPSCs while leaving GABAA,fast sIPSCs unchanged. This effect was observed in animals as young as P13 and was blocked by coapplication of tetrodotoxin, suggesting that NE was acting to increase the spontaneous firing rate of GABAA,slow interneurons and consistent with our hypothesis that developmental changes in GABAA,slow IPSCs are due to changes in presynaptic excitability. In contrast to the changes we observed in GABAA,slow IPSCs, the properties of GABAA,fast sIPSCs remained largely constant between P11 and P35, whereas the rate, amplitude, and kinetics of GABAA,fast mIPSCs showed significant changes between P10 and P30, suggesting counterbalancing changes in action potential-dependent GABAA,fast sIPSCs. These observations suggest differential developmental regulation of the firing properties of GABAA,fast and GABAA,slow interneurons in CA1 between P10 and P35.

scholarly journals The NMDA-to-AMPA Ratio at Synapses Onto Layer 2/3 Pyramidal Neurons Is Conserved Across Prefrontal and Visual Cortices

2003 ◽  
Vol 90 (2) ◽  
pp. 771-779 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chaelon I. O. Myme ◽  
Ken Sugino ◽  
Gina G. Turrigiano ◽  
Sacha B. Nelson
Keyword(s):  
Ampa Receptor ◽  
Pyramidal Neurons ◽  
Brain Slices ◽  
Pyramidal Cells ◽  
Cell Voltage ◽  
Decay Kinetics ◽  
Excitatory Transmission ◽  
Layer 2 ◽  
Medial Pfc

To better understand regulation of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) and α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptor complements across the cortex, and to investigate NMDA receptor (NMDAR)-based models of persistent activity, we compared NMDA/AMPA ratios in prefrontal (PFC) and visual cortex (VC) in rat. Whole cell voltage-clamp responses were recorded in brain slices from layer 2/3 pyramidal cells of the medial PFC and VC of rats aged p16–p21. Mixed miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents (mEPSCs) having AMPA receptor (AMPAR)- and NMDAR-mediated components were isolated in nominally 0 Mg2+ ACSF. Averaged mEPSCs were well-fit by double exponentials. No significant differences in the NMDA/AMPA ratio (PFC: 27 ± 1%; VC: 28 ± 3%), peak mEPSC amplitude (PFC: 19.1 ± 1 pA; VC: 17.5 ± 0.7 pA), NMDAR decay kinetics (PFC: 69 ± 8 ms; VC: 67 ± 6 ms), or degree of correlation between NMDAR- and AMPAR-mediated mEPSC components were found between the areas (PFC: n = 27; VC: n = 28). Recordings from older rats (p26–29) also showed no differences. EPSCs were evoked extracellularly in 2 mM Mg2+ at depolarized potentials; although the average NMDA/AMPA ratio was larger than that observed for mEPSCs, the ratio was similar in the two regions. In nominally 0 Mg2+ and in the presence of CNQX, spontaneous activation of NMDAR increased recording noise and produced a small tonic depolarization which was similar in both areas. We conclude that this basic property of excitatory transmission is conserved across PFC and VC synapses and is therefore unlikely to contribute to differences in firing patterns observed in vivo in the two regions.

scholarly journals Homeostatic Plasticity Hypothesis and Mechanisms of Neocortical Epilepsies

2005 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 133-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaideep Kapur ◽  
Stacey Trotter
Keyword(s):  
Synaptic Plasticity ◽  
Neuronal Activity ◽  
Pyramidal Neurons ◽  
Pyramidal Cells ◽  
Homeostatic Plasticity ◽  
Excitatory Synapses ◽  
Excitatory Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Inhibitory Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Homeostatic Synaptic Plasticity

Homeostatic Synaptic Plasticity Can Explain Posttraumatic Epileptogenesis in Chronically Isolated Neocortex Houweling AR, Bazhenov M, Timofeev I, Steriade M, Sejnowski TJ Cereb Cortex 2004 [Epub ahead of print] Permanently isolated neocortex develops chronic hyperexcitability and focal epileptogenesis in a period of days to weeks. The mechanisms operating in this model of posttraumatic epileptogenesis are not well understood. We hypothesized that the spontaneous burst discharges recorded in permanently isolated neocortex result from homeostatic plasticity (a mechanism generally assumed to stabilize neuronal activity) induced by low neuronal activity after deafferentation. To test this hypothesis, we constructed computer models of neocortex incorporating a biologically based homeostatic plasticity rule that operates to maintain firing rates. After deafferentation, homeostatic upregulation of excitatory synapses on pyramidal cells, either with or without concurrent downregulation of inhibitory synapses or upregulation of intrinsic excitability, initiated slowly repeating burst discharges that closely resembled the epileptiform burst discharges recorded in permanently isolated neocortex. These burst discharges lasted a few hundred milliseconds, propagated at 1 to 3 cm/s and consisted of large (10–15 mV) intracellular depolarizations topped by a small number of action potentials. Our results support a role for homeostatic synaptic plasticity as a novel mechanism of posttraumatic epileptogenesis. Excitatory and Inhibitory Postsynaptic Currents in a Rat Model of Epileptogenic Microgyria Jacobs KM, Prince DA J Neurophysiol 2005;93:687–696 Developmental cortical malformations are common in patients with intractable epilepsy; however, mechanisms contributing to this epileptogenesis are currently poorly understood. We previously characterized hyperexcitability in a rat model that mimics the histopathology of human four-layered microgyria. Here we examined inhibitory and excitatory postsynaptic currents in this model to identify functional alterations that might contribute to epileptogenesis associated with microgyria. We recorded isolated whole-cell excitatory postsynaptic currents and GABAA receptor–mediated inhibitory currents from layer V pyramidal neurons in the region previously shown to be epileptogenic (paramicrogyral area) and in homotopic control cortex. Epileptiform-like activity could be evoked in 60% of paramicrogyral (PMG) cells by local stimulation. The peak conductance of both spontaneous and evoked inhibitory postsynaptic currents was significantly larger in all PMG cells compared with controls. This difference in amplitude was not present after blockade of ionotropic glutamatergic currents or for miniature (m) inhibitory postsynaptic currents, suggesting that it was due to the excitatory afferent activity driving inhibitory neurons. This conclusion was supported by the finding that glutamatereceptor antagonist application resulted in a significantly greater reduction in spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic current frequency in one PMG cell group (PMGE) compared with control cells. The frequency of both spontaneous and miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents was significantly greater in all PMG cells, suggesting that pyramidal neurons adjacent to a microgyrus receive more excitatory input than do those in control cortex. These findings suggest that there is an increase in numbers of functional excitatory synapses on both interneurons and pyramidal cells in the PMG cortex, perhaps due to hyperinnervation by cortical afferents originally destined for the microgyrus proper.

scholarly journals Functional CB1 Receptors Are Broadly Expressed in Neocortical GABAergic and Glutamatergic Neurons

2007 ◽  
Vol 97 (4) ◽  
pp. 2580-2589 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisa L. Hill ◽  
Thierry Gallopin ◽  
Isabelle Férézou ◽  
Bruno Cauli ◽  
Jean Rossier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pyramidal Neurons ◽  
Cannabinoid Receptor ◽  
Physiological Data ◽  
Glutamatergic Neurons ◽  
Neuronal Populations ◽  
Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Neocortical Neurons ◽  
Neuronal Types ◽  
Cb1 Antagonist ◽  
Whole Cell Recordings

The cannabinoid receptor CB1 is found in abundance in brain neurons, whereas CB2 is essentially expressed outside the brain. In the neocortex, CB1 is observed predominantly on large cholecystokinin (CCK)-expressing interneurons. However, physiological evidence suggests that functional CB1 are present on other neocortical neuronal types. We investigated the expression of CB1 and CB2 in identified neurons of rat neocortical slices using single-cell RT-PCR. We found that 63% of somatostatin (SST)-expressing and 69% of vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP)-expressing interneurons co-expressed CB1. As much as 49% of pyramidal neurons expressed CB1. In contrast, CB2 was observed in a small proportion of neocortical neurons. We performed whole cell recordings of pyramidal neurons to corroborate our molecular findings. Inhibitory postsynaptic currents (IPSCs) induced by a mixed muscarinic/nicotinic cholinergic agonist showed depolarization-induced suppression of inhibition and were decreased by the CB1 agonist WIN-55212-2 (WIN-2), suggesting that interneurons excited by cholinergic agonists (mainly SST and VIP neurons) possess CB1. IPSCs elicited by a nicotinic receptor agonist were also reduced in the presence of WIN-2, suggesting that neurons excited by nicotinic agonists (mainly VIP neurons) indeed possess CB1. WIN-2 largely decreased excitatory postsynaptic currents evoked by intracortical electrical stimulation, pointing at the presence of CB1 on glutamatergic pyramidal neurons. All WIN-2 effects were strongly reduced by the CB1 antagonist AM 251. We conclude that CB1 is expressed in various neocortical neuronal populations, including glutamatergic neurons. Our combined molecular and physiological data suggest that CB1 widely mediates endocannabinoid effects on glutamatergic and GABAergic transmission to modulate cortical networks.

scholarly journals An unconventional GABAergic circuit differently controls pyramidal neuron activity in two visual cortical areas via endocannabinoids

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Montmerle ◽  
Fani Koukouli ◽  
Andrea Aguirre ◽  
Jeremy Peixoto ◽  
Vikash Choudhary ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pyramidal Neurons ◽  
Cannabinoid Receptor ◽  
Gaba Release ◽  
Network Activity ◽  
Connectivity Pattern ◽  
Neuron Activity ◽  
Cortical Areas ◽  
Visual Cortical ◽  
And Function

Perisomatic inhibition of neocortical pyramidal neurons (PNs) coordinates cortical network activity during sensory processing, and it has been mainly attributed to parvalbumin-expressing basket cells (BCs). However, cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1)-expressing interneurons also inhibit the perisomatic region of PNs but the connectivity and function of these elusive, yet prominent, neocortical GABAergic cells is unknown. We found that the connectivity pattern of CB1-positive BCs strongly differs between primary and high-order cortical visual areas. Moreover, persistently active CB1 signaling suppresses GABA release from CB1 BCs in the medial secondary visual cortex (V2M), but not in the primary (V1) visual area. Accordingly, in vivo, tonic CB1 signaling is responsible for higher but less coordinated PN activity in V2M than in V1. Our results indicate a differential CB1-mediated mechanism controlling PN activity, and suggest an alternative connectivity schemes of a specific GABAergic circuit in different cortical areas

Prolongation of Hippocampal Miniature Inhibitory Postsynaptic Currents in Mice Lacking the GABAA Receptor α1 Subunit

2002 ◽  
Vol 88 (6) ◽  
pp. 3208-3217 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter A. Goldstein ◽  
Frank P. Elsen ◽  
Shui-Wang Ying ◽  
Carolyn Ferguson ◽  
Gregg E. Homanics ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pyramidal Cells ◽  
Fluctuation Analysis ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Knock Out ◽  
Inhibitory Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Ca1 Pyramidal Cells ◽  
Postsynaptic Currents ◽  
Decay Times ◽  
Kinetics Of ◽  
Α1 Subunit

GABAA receptors (GABAA-Rs) are pentameric structures consisting of two α, two β, and one γ subunit. The α subunit influences agonist efficacy, benzodiazepine pharmacology, and kinetics of activation/deactivation. To investigate the contribution of the α1 subunit to native GABAA-Rs, we analyzed miniature inhibitory postsynaptic currents (mIPSCs) in CA1 hippocampal pyramidal cells and interneurons from wild-type (WT) and α1 subunit knock-out (α1 KO) mice. mIPSCs recorded from interneurons and pyramidal cells obtained from α1 KO mice were detected less frequently, were smaller in amplitude, and decayed more slowly than mIPSCs recorded in neurons from WT mice. The effect of zolpidem was examined in view of its reported selectivity for receptors containing the α1 subunit. In interneurons and pyramidal cells from WT mice, zolpidem significantly increased mIPSC frequency, prolonged mIPSC decay, and increased mIPSC amplitude; those effects were diminished or absent in neurons from α1 KO mice. Nonstationary fluctuation analysis of mIPSCs indicated that the zolpidem-induced increase in mIPSC amplitude was associated with an increase in the number of open receptors rather than a change in the unitary conductance of individual channels. These data indicate that the α1 subunit is present at synapses on WT interneurons and pyramidal cells, although differences in mIPSC decay times and zolpidem sensitivity suggest that the degree to which the α1 subunit is functionally expressed at synapses on CA1 interneurons may be greater than that at synapses on CA1 pyramidal cells.

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