Elsevier

Brain Research

Volume 1002, Issues 1–2, 26 March 2004, Pages 158-161
Brain Research

Short communication
Short-term depression of synaptic transmission from rat lateral geniculate nucleus to primary visual cortex in vivo

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brainres.2004.01.001Get rights and content

Abstract

Two forms of short-term synaptic plasticity, paired-pulse depression (PPD) and frequency depression, were prominent in the adult rat geniculo-cortical visual pathway in vivo. Iontophoresis of GABAa receptor antagonist (bicuculline methiodide) or GABAb receptor antagonist (2-hydroxy-saclofen) in the primary visual cortex significantly reduced the short-term synaptic depression. When NMDA or AMPA/kainate receptors were blocked, no obvious change of synaptic depression was observed. Application of high [Ca2+] enhanced the short-term synaptic depression. Our results suggest that the presynaptic Ca2+-dependent neurotransmitter depletion and postsynaptic GABAergic inhibition may be crucial for short-term synaptic depression in the geniculo-cortical pathway.

Section snippets

Acknowledgements

This investigation was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30070257), Foundation of Chinese Academy of Sciences (KSCX2-SW-217-03) and Visual Information Processing Laboratory, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

References (21)

There are more references available in the full text version of this article.

Cited by (16)

  • GABA<inf>B</inf> receptors: modulation of thalamocortical dynamics and synaptic plasticity

    2021, Neuroscience
    Citation Excerpt :

    In vivo experiments also studied the functions of GABAB-R blockage on short-term synaptic plasticity. Jia and colleagues described the impact of the blockage of GABAB-Rs in the thalamocortical visual pathway (Jia et al., 2004). They did so by means of electrical stimulation in the dLGN and recordings in V1 before and after iontophoresis of 2-hydroxy-saclofen.

  • The influences of dark rearing on the transmission characteristics of layer II/III pyramidal cells during the critical period

    2012, Brain Research
    Citation Excerpt :

    The reduction occurs mainly during P14 and P21, and dark rearing can retard this trend. Maturation of GABAergic inhibition is thought to be involved in the transformation of PPR of IPSCs in the visual cortex (Jia et al., 2004; Morales et al., 2002; Ramoa and Sur, 1996). The IPSC/EPSC ratio increases gradually with age during the critical period of visual development.

  • Differential effects of GABA<inf>B</inf> autoreceptor activation on ethanol potentiation of local and lateral paracapsular GABAergic synapses in the rat basolateral amygdala

    2009, Neuropharmacology
    Citation Excerpt :

    Using an inter-pulse interval of 250 ms, we observed significant PPD at local synapses, with no such depression at lpcs synapses under our basal recording conditions. Importantly, the GABAB receptor antagonist SCH-50911 significantly reduced PPD at local synapses, suggesting that a significant portion of PPD at local synapses is dependent on GABAB autoreceptor activation, as observed at GABAergic synapses in many other brain regions (Jia et al., 2004; Kolaj et al., 2004; Pearce et al., 1995). Although we found no evidence of synaptic activation of GABAB autoreceptors at lpcs synapses, bath application of SCH-50911 did significantly potentiate the peak amplitude of the paired lpcs responses compared to baseline levels, similar to our previous findings with individually-evoked lpcs IPSCs.

  • Functional degradation of visual cortical cells in aged rats

    2006, Brain Research
    Citation Excerpt :

    Intervals between pairs of stimuli were at least 30 s. Optimal stimulus intensity was determined by running a full input–output series at the beginning of recording, and a stimulation intensity yielding 50–60% of maximum was selected for the experiment. The PPD ratio was measured as the size of the second postsynaptic potential (PSP) amplitude relative to the first PSP amplitude with paired-pulse stimulation (Jia et al., 2004). Saline filled, glass recording electrodes (2–3 MΩ impedance) were used to record neuronal activity.

View all citing articles on Scopus
View full text