Two forms of short-term synaptic plasticity (STP), paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) and frequency potentiation (FP) of CA1 field excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSP) to afferent stimulation were compared in slices taken from the dorsal and ventral parts of rat hippocampus. While dorsal slices showed significant PPF at all interpulse intervals (20-1400 ms, 80% at 40 ms), PPF in ventral slices was substantially weaker at intervals shorter than 100 ms (19% at 40 ms) and nil at longer intervals. While dorsal slices showed substantial FP at frequencies 1-40 Hz and frequency depression at 50-100 Hz, ventral slices showed only a much smaller potentiation at 1 Hz and substantial depression at 20-100 Hz. Decreasing [Ca(2+)](o) from 2 to 1 and 0.5 mM substantially reduced the baseline EPSPs in both groups of slices but its effect on PPF was greater in ventral slices. On the contrary when [Ca(2+)](o) was increased to 5 mM only dorsal slices showed an enhancement of baseline EPSP. It is concluded that ventral hippocampus CA1 area has a specific deficit in STP, which is related to the important presynaptic role of calcium and is consistent with a relatively higher transmitter release probability.