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The Journal of Neuroscience, November 1, 1998, 18(21):8826-8838
Establishment of Patterned Thalamocortical Connections Does Not
Require Nitric Oxide Synthase
Eva M.
Finney and
Carla J.
Shatz
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Howard Hughes Medical
Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720
Subplate neurons are early-generated neurons that project into the
overlying neocortex and are required for the formation of ocular
dominance columns. A subset of subplate neurons express nitric oxide
synthase (NOS) and produce nitric oxide (NO), a neuronal messenger
thought to be involved in adult hippocampal synaptic plasticity and
also in the establishment of certain specific connections during visual
system development. Here, we examine whether the NOS-containing
subplate neurons are involved in ocular dominance column formation in
the ferret visual system. Ocular dominance columns form in ferrets
between postnatal day 35 (P35) and P60. NOS expression in the visual
subplate is low at birth, increases to a maximum at the onset of ocular
dominance column formation, and falls thereafter. Nevertheless,
blockade of NOS with daily injections of nitroarginine from P14 to P56
fails to prevent the formation of ocular dominance columns, although
NOS activity is reduced by >98%. To test further a requirement for
NOS in the patterning of connections during CNS development, we
examined the cortical barrels in the somatosensory system of mice
carrying targeted disruptions of NOS that also received injections of
nitroarginine; cortical barrels formed normally in these animals. In
addition, barrel field plasticity induced by whisker ablation at birth
was normal in nitroarginine-injected NOS knock-out mice. Thus, despite the dynamic regulation of NOS in subplate neurons, NO is unlikely to be
essential for the patterning of thalamocortical connections either in
visual or somatosensory systems.
Key words:
ocular dominance columns; nitric oxide synthase; visual
system; barrels; knock-out; nitroarginine; synaptic plasticity
Copyright © 1998 Society for Neuroscience 0270-6474/98/18218826-13$05.00/0
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