Substrates for Coincidence Detection and Calcium Signaling for Induction of Synaptic Potentiation in the Neonatal Visual Cortex

2004 ◽  
Vol 91 (6) ◽  
pp. 2747-2764 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura A. Schrader ◽  
Stephen P. Perrett ◽  
Lan Ye ◽  
Michael J. Friedlander

Regulation of the efficacy of synaptic transmission by activity-dependent processes has been implicated in learning and memory as well as in developmental processes. We previously described transient potentiation of excitatory synapses onto layer 2/3 pyramidal neurons in the visual cortex that is induced by coincident presynaptic stimulation and postsynaptic depolarization. In the adult visual cortex, activation of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) glutamate receptors is necessary to induce this plasticity. These receptors act as coincidence detectors, sensing presynaptic glutamate release and postsynaptic depolarization, and cause an influx of Ca2+ that is necessary for the potentiation. In the neurons of the neonatal visual cortex, on the other hand, coincident presynaptic stimulation and postsynaptic depolarization induce stable long-term potentiation (LTP). In addition, reduced but significant LTP can be induced in many neurons in the presence of the NMDA receptor (NMDAR) antagonist, 2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid despite the Ca2+ requirement. Therefore there must be an alternative postsynaptic Ca2+ source and coincidence detection mechanism linked to the LTP induction mechanism in the neonatal cortex operating in addition to NMDARs. In this study, we find that in layer 2/3 pyramidal neurons, release of Ca2+ from inositol trisphosphate (InsP3) receptor-mediated intracellular stores and influx through voltage-gated Ca2+ channels (VGCCs) provide alternative postsynaptic Ca2+ sources. We hypothesize that InsP3Rs are coincidence detectors, sensing presynaptic glutamate release through linkage with group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs), and depolarization, through VGCCs. We also find that the downstream protein kinases, PKA and PKC, have a role in potentiation in layer 2/3 pyramidal neurons of the neonatal visual cortex.

2012 ◽  
Vol 107 (4) ◽  
pp. 1058-1066 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng Zhang ◽  
John E. Lisman

CaMKII and PSD-95 are the two most abundant postsynaptic proteins in the postsynaptic density (PSD). Overexpression of either can dramatically increase synaptic strength and saturate long-term potentiation (LTP). To do so, CaMKII must be activated, but the same is not true for PSD-95; expressing wild-type PSD-95 is sufficient. This raises the question of whether PSD-95's effects are simply an equilibrium process [increasing the number of AMPA receptor (AMPAR) slots] or whether activity is somehow involved. To examine this question, we blocked activity in cultured hippocampal slices with TTX and found that the effects of PSD-95 overexpression were greatly reduced. We next studied the type of receptors involved. The effects of PSD-95 were prevented by antagonists of group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) but not by antagonists of ionotropic glutamate receptors. The inhibition of PSD-95-induced strengthening was not simply a result of inhibition of PSD-95 synthesis. To understand the mechanisms involved, we tested the role of CaMKII. Overexpression of a CaMKII inhibitor, CN19, greatly reduced the effect of PSD-95. We conclude that PSD-95 cannot itself increase synaptic strength simply by increasing the number of AMPAR slots; rather, PSD-95's effects on synaptic strength require an activity-dependent process involving mGluR and CaMKII.


2001 ◽  
Vol 86 (4) ◽  
pp. 1622-1631 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao-Tao Jin ◽  
Christopher J. Beaver ◽  
Qinghua Ji ◽  
Nigel W. Daw

Metabotropic glutamate receptors have a variety of effects in visual cortex that depend on the age of the animal, the layer of the cortex, and the group of the receptor. Here we describe these effects for group I receptors, using both in vivo and in vitro preparations. The metabotropic group I glutamate receptor agonist 3,5 dihydroxyphenylglycine (DHPG) potentiates the responses to N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) and α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) in slices of rat visual cortex. It also increases, initially, the visual response in the cat visual cortex. Both these effects are largest at 3–4 wk of age and decline to insignificance by 10 wk of age. Both are also largest in lower layers of cortex, which explains why the facilitatory effects found with the general metabotropic glutamate agonist 1S,3R aminocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylic acid (ACPD) are observed only in lower layers. Prolonged application of DHPG in the cat visual cortex, after the initial excitatory effect, produces depression. We also found that DHPG facilitates the NMDA response in fast-spiking cells, which are inhibitory, providing a partial explanation for this. Thus there are multiple effects of group I metabotropic glutamate receptors, which vary with layer and age in visual cortex.


2013 ◽  
Vol 110 (10) ◽  
pp. 2325-2336 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua L. Plotkin ◽  
Weixing Shen ◽  
Igor Rafalovich ◽  
Luke E. Sebel ◽  
Michelle Day ◽  
...  

The induction of corticostriatal long-term depression (LTD) in striatal spiny projection neurons (SPNs) requires coactivation of group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) and L-type Ca2+ channels. This combination leads to the postsynaptic production of endocannabinoids that act presynaptically to reduce glutamate release. Although the necessity of coactivation is agreed upon, why it is necessary in physiologically meaningful settings is not. The studies described here attempt to answer this question by using two-photon laser scanning microscopy and patch-clamp electrophysiology to interrogate the dendritic synapses of SPNs in ex vivo brain slices from transgenic mice. These experiments revealed that postsynaptic action potentials induce robust ryanodine receptor (RYR)-dependent Ca2+-induced-Ca2+ release (CICR) in SPN dendritic spines. Depolarization-induced opening of voltage-gated Ca2+ channels was necessary for CICR. CICR was more robust in indirect pathway SPNs than in direct pathway SPNs, particularly in distal dendrites. Although it did not increase intracellular Ca2+ concentration alone, group I mGluR activation enhanced CICR and slowed Ca2+ clearance, extending the activity-evoked intraspine transient. The mGluR modulation of CICR was sensitive to antagonism of inositol trisphosphate receptors, RYRs, src kinase, and Cav1.3 L-type Ca2+ channels. Uncaging glutamate at individual spines effectively activated mGluRs and facilitated CICR induced by back-propagating action potentials. Disrupting CICR by antagonizing RYRs prevented the induction of corticostriatal LTD with spike-timing protocols. In contrast, mGluRs had no effect on the induction of long-term potentiation. Taken together, these results make clearer how coactivation of mGluRs and L-type Ca2+ channels promotes the induction of activity-dependent LTD in SPNs.


1998 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 1981-1988 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rod J. Sayer

Sayer, Rod J. Group I metabotropic glutamate receptors mediate slow inhibition of calcium current in neocortical neurons J. Neurophysiol. 80: 1981–1988, 1998. Metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR)-mediated inhibition of high-voltage-activated Ca2+ currents was investigated in pyramidal neurons acutely isolated from rat dorsal frontoparietal neocortex. Whole cell recordings were made at 30–32°C, with Ca2+ as the charge carrier. Selective agonists were used to classify the subgroup of mGluRs mediating the response. Ca2+ currents were inhibited by (1S,3R)-1-aminocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylic acid (1S,3R-ACPD) and by the group I agonist (RS)-3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine (DHPG) but not by the group II agonist (2S,2′R,3′R)-2-(2′,3′-dicarboxycyclopropyl)glycine (DCG-IV) or the group III agonist l(+)-2-amino-4-phosphonobutryic acid (l-AP4). (2S,1′S,2′S)-2-(carboxycyclopropyl)glycine (l-CCG-I) was effective at 10 and 100 μM but not at 1 μM, consistent with involvement of group I mGluRs. Variable results were obtained with the putative mGluR5-selective agonist (RS)-2-chloro-5-hydroxyphenylglycine (CHPG) and the putative mGluR1-selective antagonist (S)-4-carboxyphenylglycine [(S)-4CPG], indicating that the group I mGluR subtypes may vary between cells or that these compounds were activating other receptors. The actions of (+)-α-methyl-4-carboxyphenylglycine [(+)-MCPG] were consistent with it being a low-potency antagonist. Several features of the Ca2+ current inhibition evoked by DHPG distinguished it from the rapid modulation typical of a direct action of G proteins on Ca2+ channels; the inhibition was slow to reach maximum (tens of seconds), current activation was not slowed or shifted in the positive voltage direction, and the inhibition was not relieved by positive prepulses. Nimodipine and ω-conotoxin GVIA blocked fractions of the current and also reduced the magnitude of the responses to DHPG, indicating that both L- and N-type Ca2+ channels were regulated. These results further differentiate the slow modulatory pathway observed in neocortical neurons when Ca2+ is used as the charge carrier from the rapid voltage-dependent mechanism reported to inhibit Ba2+ currents under Ca2+-free conditions.


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