title: NMDA receptor-dependent refinement of somatotopic maps.
abstract: We have examined the role of NMDA receptor-mediated neural activity in the formation of periphery-related somatosensory patterns, using genetically engineered mice. We demonstrate that ectopic expression of a transgene of an NMDAR1 splice variant rescues neonatally fatal NMDAR1 knockout (KO) mice, although the average life span varies depending on the level of the transgene expression. In NMDAR1 KO mice with "high" levels of the transgene expression, sensory periphery-related patterns were normal along both the trigeminal and dorsal column pathways. In the KO mice with "low" levels of the transgene expression, the patterns were absent in the trigeminal pathway. Our results indicate that NMDA receptor-mediated neural activity plays a critical role in pattern formation along the ascending somatosensory pathways.
authors.affiliation: Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Center for Learning and Memory, Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02139, USA.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Iwasato
authors.forename: R S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Erzurumlu
authors.forename: P T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Huerta
authors.forename: D F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sasaoka
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ulupinar
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tonegawa
mesh_terms: D017398:Alternative Splicing; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV / Q000032:analysis; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005818:Genetic Engineering; D014644:Genetic Variation; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008808:Mice, Inbred CBA; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D009252:NADPH Dehydrogenase / Q000032:analysis; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000172:deficiency / Q000235:genetics; D014276:Trigeminal Nerve / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV; D009252:NADPH Dehydrogenase; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate