Inhibitory conductance changes at synapses in the lamprey brainstem

Glycine-immunoreactive neurons in the developing spinal cord of the sea lamprey: comparison with the gamma-aminobutyric acidergic system

The development and cellular distribution of the inhibitory neurotransmitter glycine in the spinal cord of the sea lamprey were studied by immunocytochemistry and double immunofluorescence and compared with the distribution of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). Results in lamprey embryos and prolarvae reveal that the appearance of glycine-immunoreactive (-ir) spinal neurons precedes that of GABA-ir neurons. Throughout development, glycine-ir cells in the lateral and dorsomedial gray matter of the spinal cord are more numerous than the GABA-ir cells. Only a subset of these neurons shows colocalization of GABA and glycine, suggesting that they are primarily disparate neuronal populations. In contrast, most cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)-contacting neurons of the central canal walls are strongly GABA-ir, and only a portion of them are faintly glycine-ir. Some edge cells (lamprey intraspinal mechanoreceptors) were glycine-ir in larvae and adults. The glycine-ir and GABA-ir neuronal populations observed in the adult spinal cord were similar to those found in larvae. Comparison of glycine-ir and GABA-ir fibers coursing longitudinally in the spinal cord of adult lamprey revealed large differences in diameter between these two types of fiber. Commissural glycine-ir fibers appear in prolarvae and become numerous at larval stages, whereas crossed GABA-ir are scarce. Taken together, results in this primitive vertebrate indicate that the spinal glycinergic cells do not arise by biochemical shift of preexisting GABAergic cells but instead suggest that glycine is present in the earliest circuitry of the developing lamprey spinal cord, where it might act transiently as an excitatory transmitter.

Dorsal root and dorsal column mediated synaptic inputs to reticulospinal neurons in lampreys: involvement of glutamatergic, glycinergic, and GABAergic transmission

This study was aimed at characterizing the inputs from dorsal roots and dorsal columns to reticulospinal neurons within the posterior rhombencephalic reticular nucleus in the lamprey. The in vitro isolated brainstem and spinal cord preparation was used. Microstimulation of dorsal roots and columns on both sides induced, in identified reticulospinal neurons, synaptic responses which consisted of large IPSPs mixed with excitation, particularly from stimulation on the ipsilateral side. When the spinal cord was selectively exposed to kynurenic acid or to Ca2+ free Ringer's containing 2mM Mn2+, synaptic responses to stimulation of dorsal roots and columns were not modified, whereas the same responses were abolished when the brainstem was exposed selectively to kynurenic acid, thus suggesting that the responses were carried by long fibres ascending directly to the brainstem. The excitatory and inhibitory synaptic responses are relayed by interneurons located in the brainstem. The ascending excitatory inputs to inhibitory interneurons and, most likely, also to excitatory interneurons, use excitatory amino acid transmission. Inhibitory responses were abolished by adding the glycinergic antagonist strychnine (5 microM) to the physiological solution, thus suggesting that inhibitory interneurons use glycine transmission. The synaptic transmission was depressed by (-)-baclofen, a GABAB agonist, probably acting at a presynaptic site. Taken together, the present results suggest that dorsal root and dorsal column stimulations give rise to disynaptic inhibition and excitation of reticulospinal neurons mediated by excitatory and inhibitory amino acid transmission via brainstem interneurons.

Excitatory amino acid-evoked membrane currents and excitatory synaptic transmission in lamprey reticulospinal neurons

The characteristics of excitatory amino acid-evoked currents and of excitatory synaptic events have been examined in lamprey Müller neurons using voltage clamp and current clamp recording techniques. Application of glutamate evoked depolarizations associated with a decrease in input resistance. The reversal potential of the responses was -35 mV. Under voltage clamp conditions, a series of excitatory amino acid agonists evoked inward currents associated with little or no increase in baseline current noise. The order of potency of the excitatory amino acid agonists was quisqualate greater than kainate greater than glutamate greater than aspartate, while N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) was inactive. Inward currents evoked by glutamate, as well as by kainate and quisqualate were attenuated reversibly by 1 mM kynurenic acid (KYN). In contrast, glutamate-evoked currents were not affected by 100 microM D(-)-2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid (APV), a selective NMDA antagonist. Spontaneously occurring and stimulus-evoked excitatory postsynaptic events were antagonized reversibly by 1 mM KYN. At this concentration, KYN had no effect on membrane potential, input resistance, or excitability of the cells. In contrast, excitatory postsynaptic currents were unaffected by APV. It is concluded that both glutamate responses and excitatory synaptic transmission in lamprey Müller neurons are mediated by non-NMDA-type receptors and that these receptors are associated with ionic channels with a low elementary conductance. The combined pharmacological and biophysical characteristics of these responses are therefore different from those previously reported in other preparations. Spontaneous (but not stimulus-evoked) inhibitory synaptic events in Müller neurons were blocked reversibly by 1 mM KYN but not by 100 microM APV, suggesting that excitation of interneurons inhibitory to Müller cells was also mediated by non-NMDA receptors.

Understanding the intrinsic circuitry of the cat's lateral geniculate nucleus: electrical properties of the spine-triad arrangement

Electron-microscopic studies of relay cells in the lateral geniculate nucleus of the cat have shown that the retinal input to X-cells is associated with a special synaptic circuitry, termed the spine-triad. The retinal afferent makes an asymmetrical synapse with both a dendritic appendage of the X-cell and a geniculate interneuron. The interneuron contacts in turn the same dendritic appendage with a symmetrical synaptic profile. The retinal input to geniculate Y-cells is predominantly found on dendritic shafts without any triadic arrangement. We explore the integrative properties of X- and Y-cells resulting from this striking dichotomy in synaptic architecture. The basis of our analysis is the solution of the passive cable equation in a HRP-stained and reconstructed geniculate X-cell with known somatic input resistance. Recent evidence shows that geniculate interneurons stain for glutamic acid decarboxylase, the synthesizing enzyme for the inhibitory neuro-transmitterγ-aminobutyric acid (GABA). Under the assumption that the GABAergic inhibition has a reversal potential close to the resting potential of the cell, activation of the interneuron reduces very efficiently the excitatory postsynaptic potential induced by the retinal afferentwithoutaffecting the electrical activity in the rest of the cell. Therefore, the spine—triad circuit implements the analogue version of an AND—NOT gate. Functionally, this corresponds to a presynaptic, feed-forward type of inhibition of the optic tract terminal although inhibition actually occurs at a postsynaptic site. If the inhibition has a reversal potential well below the resting potential, the inhibitory postsynaptic potential would hyperpolarize large parts of the relay cell, abolishing the local character of the synaptic veto operation. Since Y-cells lack this structure, inhibition acts globally, reducing the general electrical activity of the cell. We propose that geniculate interneurons gate the flow of visual information into the X-system as a function of the behavioural state of the animal, enhancing the centre-surround antagonism and possibly mediating reciprocal lateral inhibition and eye-movement-related suppression.

Evidence that receptors mediating central synaptic potentials extend beyond the postsynaptic density

Physiological recordings and computer simulations of unitary inhibitory postsynaptic potentials in the Mauthner cell of the goldfish central nervous system have been used to estimate the expected size of the postsynaptic receptor matrix at individual junctions. Simultaneous pre- and postsynaptic recordings were used to determine the kinetic parameters of the quantal responses under normal conditions and in the presence of strychnine, a competitive antagonist of glycine, which is the putative transmitter at these synapses. Calculations indicate that if the postsynaptic density, which has a radius of 0.1 micron, were to accommodate the population of channels estimated to be opened during a quantal response, the glycine binding site density in that region would be unrealistically high. Computer simulation of the quantal responses included transmitter diffusion, transmitter-receptor interactions, and channel activation under conditions including both normal and lowered binding site densities, the latter corresponding to the experimental data obtained with strychnine. The data indicate that the synaptic receptors involved in generating unitary responses are widely distributed to include regions located outside the junctional area, which directly faces the presynaptic release sites. We further suggest that the receptor matrix is surrounded by a restricted diffusional space; this geometrical organization may underlie the finding that response rise times are relatively independent of receptor binding site densities.

Inhibitory post-synaptic currents in rat hippocampal CA1 neurones

Spontaneous synaptic currents were recorded in voltage-clamped CA1 neurones in rat hippocampal slices at room temperature (21-25 degrees C). The currents, which could be seen at the resting membrane potential only when cells were loaded with chloride ions, were blocked by bicuculline. It was concluded that they were inhibitory post-synaptic currents (i.p.s.c.s) generated by the opening of chloride-selective channels activated by gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). In twenty-nine cells, ten to forty-five i.p.s.c.s were recorded at a potential between -75 and -85 mV. In every cell, i.p.s.c.s varied widely in amplitude with an average coefficient of variation of 28.7%. The mean amplitude varied from 0.22 to 1.16 nA with an average of 0.52 nA. Reversed (outward) currents could be recorded from cells voltage clamped at positive potentials. Null potentials varied between -20 and +20 mV, the variability being attributed to differences in chloride loading. Most currents had a rapid growth phase with a mean growth time (20-80% of peak) of 1.1 ms followed by a slower decay phase. The decay phase was exponential with a single time constant. The average decay time constant (tau D) ranged from 8.3 to 16.2 ms with a mean value of 11.0 ms. The rate of decay of currents was affected by membrane potential. tau D decreased exponentially with hyperpolarization in the range from +40 to -120 mV with an average volt constant (H value) of 146 +/- 9.6 mV (mean +/- 1 S.E. of mean, n = 17). The mean value of tau D at 0 mV was 19 ms. In some cells, growth times also decreased with hyperpolarization. The decay of currents was faster at higher temperatures but remained exponential. At 32 degrees C, the average tau D at 0 mV was 8.3 ms (n = 5) giving a Q10 value of 3.3 for the decay time constant at 0 mV. The frequency and mean amplitude of i.p.s.c.s were reduced by tetrodotoxin (TTX) or cadmium, indicating that many of the currents were generated by action potentials in presynaptic terminals. The spontaneous 'miniatures' remaining had the same time course and voltage sensitivity as currents recorded in normal solutions. Pentobarbitone (50-100 microM) greatly prolonged the decay of i.p.s.c.s but had no discernible effect on their amplitude or growth phase.

Pressure injections of fluid in the nanoliter range via micropipettes

The relationship between pressure, ejection duration and volume ejected was experimentally determined in vitro for micropipettes with different external tip diameters. The relationship between ejection duration and ejected volume is linear in the steady state (i.e. with ejection durations of 1 s or longer) and at sufficiently high pressures (above about 100 kPa) and for pipettes with a sufficiently high hydrodynamic conductance (larger than 1 pl s-1 kPa-1 at 230 kPa). In this range, flows were found with low Reynolds numbers (smaller than 10), which is consistent with laminar flows. For all but the largest micropipettes, the relationship between pressure and ejected volume is alinear: the pipettes' apparent hydrodynamic conductances increase with increasing pressure. Micropipettes with apparent hydrodynamic conductances between 0.04 and 1400 pl s-1 kPa-1 (at 230 kPa) were tested. Duration-pressure combinations could be defined where the duration-volume relationship was either linear or monotonic. such duration-pressure combinations were different for pipettes with different apparent hydrodynamic conductances. A quick method is described to measure the pipette's apparent hydrodynamic conductance at the pressure used, corrected for the fluid's viscosity. Measurement of this conductance permits predictable injections of known volumes of fluid in the range of 100 pl to 1 microliter with a precision of 10-20%.