QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

HOME  |   SEARCH  |   ARCHIVE  |   SUBSCRIBE  |   CONTACT  |   HELP

The Journal of Neuroscience, February 14, 2007, 27(7):1746-1755; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4383-06.2007

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Supplemental Data Submit an eLetter Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (6) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Chandrasekaran, A. R. Articles by Crair, M. C. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Chandrasekaran, A. R. Articles by Crair, M. C. Pubmed/NCBI databases Gene GEO Profiles HomoloGene UniGene Compound via MeSH Substance via MeSH

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Development/Plasticity/Repair
Developmental Homeostasis of Mouse Retinocollicular Synapses

Anand R. Chandrasekaran,^1 * Ruchir D. Shah,^1 * and Michael C. Crair^1,2

¹Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, and ²Department of Neurobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06510

Correspondence should be addressed to Michael C. Crair, Department of Neurobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, P.O. Box 208001, New Haven, CT 06520-8001. Email: michael.crair{at}yale.edu

Spontaneous retinal waves during development are thought to provide an instructive signal for precise retinotopic mapping by correlating the activity of neighboring retinal ganglion cells. In mutant mice (ß2^–/–) that lack correlated waves, retinocollicular map refinement is impaired. In vivo recordings reveal that neurons in the superior colliculus of ß2^–/– mice have large receptive fields and low peak visual responses, resulting in a conservation of total integrated response. We find that this "response homeostasis" is maintained on a cell-by-cell basis, and argue that it does not depend on regulation from the visual cortex during adulthood. Instead, in vitro recordings show that homeostasis arises from the conservation of total synaptic input from the retina, and that it is maintained via different mechanisms over development. In the absence of correlated retinal waves, ß2^–/– neurons sample a larger number of weaker retinal inputs relative to controls after the first postnatal week. Once retinal waves are restored, developmental learning rules and homeostasis drive refinement so that fewer, stronger synapses are retained, as in wild-type mice, but from a larger retinal area. Homeostasis in neurons has been shown previously to regulate the gain of synaptic transmission in response to perturbations of activity. Our results suggest that during the development of sensory maps, a unique consequence of homeostatic mechanisms is the precise shaping of neuronal receptive fields in conjunction with activity-dependent competition.

Key words: retinal waves; superior colliculus; activity-dependent; homeostasis; development; mouse

---

Received Oct. 7, 2006; revised Jan. 4, 2007; accepted Jan. 8, 2007.

Correspondence should be addressed to Michael C. Crair, Department of Neurobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, P.O. Box 208001, New Haven, CT 06520-8001. Email: michael.crair{at}yale.edu

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. D. Shah and M. C. Crair Retinocollicular Synapse Maturation and Plasticity Are Regulated by Correlated Retinal Waves J. Neurosci., January 2, 2008; 28(1): 292 - 303. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				K. C. Riegle and R. L. Meyer Rapid Homeostatic Plasticity in the Intact Adult Visual System J. Neurosci., September 26, 2007; 27(39): 10556 - 10567. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				K. G. Pratt and C. D. Aizenman Homeostatic Regulation of Intrinsic Excitability and Synaptic Transmission in a Developing Visual Circuit J. Neurosci., August 1, 2007; 27(31): 8268 - 8277. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home  |   Search  |   Archive  |   Subscribe  |   Contact  |   Help