scholarly journals Coherent olfactory bulb gamma oscillations arise from coupling independent columnar oscillators

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shane T. Peace ◽  
Benjamin C. Johnson ◽  
Guoshi Li ◽  
Martin E. Kaiser ◽  
Izumi Fukunaga ◽  
...  

AbstractSpike timing-based representations of sensory information depend on embedded dynamical frameworks within neural structures that establish the rules of local computation and interareal communication. Here, we investigated the dynamical properties of mouse olfactory bulb circuitry. Neurochemical activation or optogenetic stimulation of sensory afferents evoked persistent (minutes) gamma oscillations in the local field potential. These oscillations arose from slower, GABA(A) receptor-independent intracolumnar oscillators coupled by GABA(A)-ergic synapses into a faster, broadly coherent network oscillation. Consistent with the theoretical properties of coupled-oscillator networks, the spatial extent of zero-phase coherence was bounded in slices by the reduced density of lateral interactions. The intact in vivo network, however, exhibits long-range lateral interactions theoretically sufficient to enable zero-phase coherence across the complete network. These coupled-oscillator dynamics thereby establish a common clock, robust to biological heterogeneities, that is capable of supporting gamma-band phase coding across the spiking output of olfactory bulb principal neurons.

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin Losacco ◽  
Daniel Ramirez-Gordillo ◽  
Jesse Gilmer ◽  
Diego Restrepo

AbstractLocal field potential oscillations reflect temporally coordinated neuronal ensembles— coupling distant brain regions, gating processing windows, and providing a reference for spike timing-based codes. In phase amplitude coupling (PAC), the amplitude of the envelope of a faster oscillation is larger within a phase window of a slower carrier wave. Here, we characterized PAC, and the related theta phase-referenced high gamma and beta power (PRP), in the olfactory bulb of mice learning to discriminate odorants. PAC changes throughout learning, and odorant-elicited changes in PRP increase for rewarded and decrease for unrewarded odorants. Contextual odorant identity (is the odorant rewarded?) can be decoded from peak PRP in animals proficient in odorant discrimination, but not in naïve mice. As the animal learns to discriminate the odorants the dimensionality of PRP decreases. Therefore, modulation of phase-referenced chunking of information in the course of learning plays a role in early sensory processing in olfaction.SignificanceEarly processing of olfactory information takes place in circuits undergoing slow frequency theta oscillations generated by the interplay of olfactory input modulated by sniffing and centrifugal feedback from downstream brain areas. Studies in the hippocampus and cortex suggest that different information “chunks” are conveyed at different phases of the theta oscillation. Here we show that in the olfactory bulb, the first processing station in the olfactory system, the amplitude of high frequency gamma oscillations encodes for information on whether an odorant is rewarded when it is observed at the peak phase of the theta oscillation. Furthermore, encoding of information by the theta phase-referenced gamma oscillations becomes more accurate as the animal learns to differentiate two odorants.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ming Chen ◽  
Yunan Chen ◽  
Qingwei Huo ◽  
Lei Wang ◽  
Shuyi Tan ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Before the deposition of amyloid-beta plaques and the onset of learning memory deficits, patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) experience olfactory dysfunction, typified by a reduced ability to detect, discriminate, and identify odors. Rodent models of AD, such as the Tg2576 and APP/PS1 mice, also display impaired olfaction, accompanied by aberrant in vivo or in vitro gamma rhythms in the olfactory pathway. However, the mechanistic relationships between the electrophysiological, biochemical and behavioral phenomena remain unclear. Methods To address the above issues in AD models, we conducted in vivo measurement of local field potential (LFP) with a combination of in vitro electro-olfactogram (EOG), whole-cell patch and field recordings to evaluate oscillatory and synaptic function and pharmacological regulation in the olfactory pathway, particularly in the olfactory bulb (OB). Levels of protein involved in excitation and inhibition of the OB were investigated by western blotting and fluorescence staining, while behavioral studies assessed olfaction and memory function. Results LFP measurements demonstrated an increase in gamma oscillations in the OB accompanied by altered olfactory behavior in both APP/PS1 and 3xTg mice at 3–5 months old, i.e. an age before the onset of plaque formation. Fewer olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) and a reduced EOG contributed to a decrease in the excitatory responses of M/T cells, suggesting a decreased ability of M/T cells to trigger interneuron GABA release indicated by altered paired-pulse ratio (PPR), a presynaptic parameter. Postsynaptically, there was a compensatory increase in levels of GABAAR α1 and β3 subunits and subsequent higher amplitude of inhibitory responses. Strikingly, the GABA uptake inhibitor tiagabine (TGB) ameliorated abnormal gamma oscillations and levels of GABAAR subunits, suggesting a potential therapeutic strategy for early AD symptoms. These findings reveal increased gamma oscillations in the OB as a core indicator prior to onset of AD and uncover mechanisms underlying aberrant gamma activity in the OB. Conclusions This study suggests that the concomitant dysfunction of both olfactory behavior and gamma oscillations have important implications for early AD diagnosis: in particular, awareness of aberrant GABAergic signaling mechanisms might both aid diagnosis and suggest therapeutic strategies for olfactory damage in AD.


2007 ◽  
Vol 98 (1) ◽  
pp. 96-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jay Spampanato ◽  
Istvan Mody

Network activity in the 200- to 600-Hz range termed high-frequency oscillations (HFOs) has been detected in epileptic tissue from both humans and rodents and may underlie the mechanism of epileptogenesis in experimental rodent models. Slower network oscillations including theta and gamma oscillations as well as ripples are generated by the complex spike timing and interactions between interneurons and pyramidal cells of the hippocampus. We determined the activity of CA3 pyramidal cells, stratum oriens lacunosum-moleculare (O-LM) and s. radiatum lacunosum-moleculare (R-LM) interneurons during HFO in the in vitro low-Mg2+ model of epileptiform activity in GIN mice. In these animals, interneurons can be identified prior to cell-attached recordings by the expression of green-fluorescent protein (GFP). Simultaneous local field potential recordings from s. pyramidale and on-cell recordings of individual interneurons and principal cells revealed three primary firing behaviors of the active cells: 36% of O-LM interneurons and 60% of pyramidal cells fired action potentials at high frequencies during the HFO. R-LM interneurons were biphasic in that they fired at high frequency at the beginning of the HFO but stopped firing before its end. When considering only the highest frequency component of the oscillations most pyramidal cells fired on the rising phase of the oscillation. These data provide evidence for functional distinction during HFOs within otherwise homogeneous groups of O-LM interneurons and pyramidal cells.


2016 ◽  
Vol 116 (2) ◽  
pp. 522-539 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bolesław L. Osinski ◽  
Leslie M. Kay

Odors evoke gamma (40–100 Hz) and beta (20–30 Hz) oscillations in the local field potential (LFP) of the mammalian olfactory bulb (OB). Gamma (and possibly beta) oscillations arise from interactions in the dendrodendritic microcircuit between excitatory mitral cells (MCs) and inhibitory granule cells (GCs). When cortical descending inputs to the OB are blocked, beta oscillations are extinguished whereas gamma oscillations become larger. Much of this centrifugal input targets inhibitory interneurons in the GC layer and regulates the excitability of GCs, which suggests a causal link between the emergence of beta oscillations and GC excitability. We investigate the effect that GC excitability has on network oscillations in a computational model of the MC-GC dendrodendritic network with Ca2+-dependent graded inhibition. Results from our model suggest that when GC excitability is low, the graded inhibitory current mediated by NMDA channels and voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels (VDCCs) is also low, allowing MC populations to fire in the gamma frequency range. When GC excitability is increased, the activation of NMDA receptors and other VDCCs is also increased, allowing the slow decay time constants of these channels to sustain beta-frequency oscillations. Our model argues that Ca2+ flow through VDCCs alone could sustain beta oscillations and that the switch between gamma and beta oscillations can be triggered by an increase in the excitability state of a subpopulation of GCs.


1997 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1251-1264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger D. Traub ◽  
Miles A. Whittington ◽  
John G. R. Jefferys

Gamma-frequency electroencephalogram oscillations may be important for cognitive processes such as feature binding. Gamma oscillations occur in hippocampus in vivo during the theta state, following physiological sharp waves, and after seizures, and they can be evoked in vitro by tetanic stimulation. In neocortex, gamma oscillations occur under conditions of sensory stimulation as well as during sleep. After tetanic or sensory stimulation, oscillations in regions separated by several millimeters or more occur at the same frequency, but with phase lags ranging from less than 1 ms to 10 ms, depending on the conditions of stimulation. We have constructed a distributed network model of pyramidal cells and interneurons, based on a variety of experiments, that accounts for near-zero phase lag synchrony of oscillations over long distances (with axon conduction delays totaling 16 ms or more). Here we show that this same model can also account for fixed positive phase lags between nearby cell groups coexisting with near-zero phase lags between separated cell groups, a phenomenon known to occur in visual cortex. The model achieves this because interneurons fire spike doublets and triplets that have average zero phase difference throughout the network; this provides a temporal framework on which pyramidal cell phase lags can be superimposed, the lag depending on how strongly the pyramidal cells are excited.


2004 ◽  
Vol 92 (2) ◽  
pp. 743-753 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramani Balu ◽  
Phillip Larimer ◽  
Ben W. Strowbridge

Mitral cells, the principal cells of the olfactory bulb, respond to sensory stimulation with precisely timed patterns of action potentials. By contrast, the same neurons generate intermittent spike clusters with variable timing in response to simple step depolarizations. We made whole cell recordings from mitral cells in rat olfactory bulb slices to examine the mechanisms by which normal sensory stimuli could generate precisely timed spike clusters. We found that individual mitral cells fired clusters of action potentials at 20-40 Hz, interspersed with periods of subthreshold membrane potential oscillations in response to depolarizing current steps. TTX (1 μM) blocked a sustained depolarizing current and fast subthreshold oscillations in mitral cells. Phasic stimuli that mimic trains of slow excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) that occur during sniffing evoked precisely timed spike clusters in repeated trials. The amplitude of the first simulated EPSP in a train gated the generation of spikes on subsequent EPSPs. 4-aminopyridine (4-AP)–sensitive K+ channels are critical to the generation of spike clusters and reproducible spike timing in response to phasic stimuli. Based on these results, we propose that spike clustering is a process that depends on the interaction between a 4-AP–sensitive K+ current and a subthreshold TTX-sensitive Na+ current; interactions between these currents may allow mitral cells to respond selectively to stimuli in the theta frequency range. These intrinsic properties of mitral cells may be important for precisely timing spikes evoked by phasic stimuli that occur in response to odor presentation in vivo.


2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (11) ◽  
pp. 2225-2239 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Bas-Orth ◽  
Justus Schneider ◽  
Andrea Lewen ◽  
Jamie McQueen ◽  
Kerstin Hasenpusch-Theil ◽  
...  

The role of the mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) gene ( Mcu) in cellular energy homeostasis and generation of electrical brain rhythms is widely unknown. We investigated this issue in mice and rats using Mcu-knockout and -knockdown strategies in vivo and in situ and determined the effects of these genetic manipulations on hippocampal gamma oscillations (30–70 Hz) and sharp wave-ripples. These physiological network states require precise neurotransmission between pyramidal cells and inhibitory interneurons, support spike-timing and synaptic plasticity and are associated with perception, attention and memory. Absence of the MCU resulted in (i) gamma oscillations with decreased power (by >40%) and lower synchrony, including less precise neural action potential generation (‘spiking'), (ii) sharp waves with decreased incidence (by about 22%) and decreased fast ripple frequency (by about 3%) and (iii) lack of activity-dependent pyruvate dehydrogenase dephosphorylation. However, compensatory adaptation in gene expression related to mitochondrial function and glucose metabolism was not detected. These data suggest that the neuronal MCU is crucial for the generation of network rhythms, most likely by influences on oxidative phosphorylation and perhaps by controlling cytoplasmic Ca2+ homeostasis. This work contributes to an increased understanding of mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake in cortical information processing underlying cognition and behaviour.


2011 ◽  
Vol 106 (6) ◽  
pp. 2936-2949 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Sciamanna ◽  
Charles J. Wilson

Striatal fast-spiking (FS) cells in slices fire in the gamma frequency range and in vivo are often phase-locked to gamma oscillations in the field potential. We studied the firing patterns of these cells in slices from rats ages 16–23 days to determine the mechanism of their gamma resonance. The resonance of striatal FS cells was manifested as a minimum frequency for repetitive firing. At rheobase, cells fired a doublet of action potentials or doublets separated by pauses, with an instantaneous firing rate averaging 44 spikes/s. The minimum rate for sustained firing was also responsible for the stuttering firing pattern. Firing rate adapted during each episode of firing, and bursts were terminated when firing was reduced to the minimum sustainable rate. Resonance and stuttering continued after blockade of Kv3 current using tetraethylammonium (0.1–1 mM). Both gamma resonance and stuttering were strongly dependent on Kv1 current. Blockade of Kv1 channels with dendrotoxin-I (100 nM) completely abolished the stuttering firing pattern, greatly lowered the minimum firing rate, abolished gamma-band subthreshold oscillations, and slowed spike frequency adaptation. The loss of resonance could be accounted for by a reduction in potassium current near spike threshold and the emergence of a fixed spike threshold. Inactivation of the Kv1 channel combined with the minimum firing rate could account for the stuttering firing pattern. The resonant properties conferred by this channel were shown to be adequate to account for their phase-locking to gamma-frequency inputs as seen in vivo.


2018 ◽  
Vol 120 (3) ◽  
pp. 1090-1106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bolesław L. Osinski ◽  
Alex Kim ◽  
Wenxi Xiao ◽  
Nisarg M. Mehta ◽  
Leslie M. Kay

The mammalian olfactory bulb (OB) generates gamma (40–100 Hz) and beta (15–30 Hz) local field potential (LFP) oscillations. Gamma oscillations arise at the peak of inhalation supported by dendrodendritic interactions between glutamatergic mitral cells (MCs) and GABAergic granule cells (GCs). Beta oscillations are induced by odorants in learning or odor sensitization paradigms, but their mechanism and function are still poorly understood. When centrifugal OB inputs are blocked, beta oscillations disappear, but gamma oscillations persist. Centrifugal inputs target primarily GABAergic interneurons in the GC layer (GCL) and regulate GC excitability, suggesting a causal link between beta oscillations and GC excitability. Our previous modeling work predicted that convergence of excitatory/inhibitory inputs onto MCs and centrifugal inputs onto GCs increase GC excitability sufficiently to produce beta oscillations primarily through voltage dependent calcium channel-mediated GABA release, independently of NMDA channels. We test some of the predictions of this model by examining the influence of NMDA and muscarinic acetylcholine (ACh) receptors, which affect GC excitability in different ways, on beta oscillations. A few minutes after intrabulbar infusion, scopolamine (muscarinic antagonist) suppressed odor-evoked beta in response to a strong stimulus but increased beta power in response to a weak stimulus, as predicted by our model. Pyriform cortex (PC) beta power was unchanged. Oxotremorine (muscarinic agonist) suppressed all oscillations, likely from overinhibition. APV, an NMDA receptor antagonist, suppressed gamma oscillations selectively (in OB and PC), lending support to the model’s prediction that beta oscillations can be supported independently of NMDA receptors. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Olfactory bulb local field potential beta oscillations appear to be gated by GABAergic granule cell excitability. Reducing excitability with scopolamine reduces beta induced by strong odors but increases beta induced by weak odors. Beta oscillations rely on the same synapse as gamma oscillations but, unlike gamma, can persist in the absence of NMDA receptor activation. Pyriform cortex beta oscillations maintain power when olfactory bulb beta power is low, and the system maintains beta band coherence.


2007 ◽  
Vol 98 (1) ◽  
pp. 394-404 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine A. Lowry ◽  
Leslie M. Kay

Recent studies have pointed to olfactory system beta oscillations of the local field potential (15–30 Hz) and their roles both in learning and as specific responses to predator odors. To describe odorant physical properties, resultant behavioral responses and changes in the central olfactory system that may induce these oscillations without associative learning, we tested rats with 26 monomolecular odorants spanning 6 log units of theoretical vapor pressure (estimate of relative vapor phase concentration) and 10 different odor mixtures. We found odorant vapor phase concentration to be inversely correlated with investigation time on the first presentation, after which investigation times were brief and not different across odorants. Analysis of local field potentials from the olfactory bulb and anterior piriform cortex shows that beta oscillations in waking rats occur specifically in response to the class of volatile organic compounds with vapor pressures of 1–120 mmHg. Beta oscillations develop over the first three to four presentations and are weakly present for some odorants in anesthetized rats. Gamma oscillations show a smaller effect that is not restricted to the same range of odorants. Olfactory bulb theta oscillations were also examined as a measure of effective afferent input strength, and the power of these oscillations did not vary systematically with vapor pressure, suggesting that it is not olfactory bulb drive strength that determines the presence of beta oscillations. Theta band coherence analysis shows that coupling strength between the olfactory bulb and piriform cortex increases linearly with vapor phase concentration, which may facilitate beta oscillations above a threshold.


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