title: Increase in postsynaptic density material in optic target neurons of the rat suprachiasmatic nucleus after bilateral enucleation.
abstract: During and after degeneration of the optic nerve afferents in the rat suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) postsynaptic density (PD) material is added to existing symmetrical and asymmetrical appositions of non-optic synapses on optic target neurons. If the correlation between thickness of the postsynaptic density and excitatory or inhibitory function of a synapse holds in this nucleus, the change in morphology of synapses could mean that some inhibitory synapses turn into excitatory contacts.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D008297:Male; D009433:Neural Inhibition; D009900:Optic Nerve / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013493:Suprachiasmatic Nucleus / Q000502:physiology*; D013569:Synapses / Q000502:physiology; D009435:Synaptic Transmission