title: Short-term potentiation of miniature excitatory synaptic currents causes excitation of supraoptic neurons.
abstract: Magnocellular neurons (MCNs) of the hypothalamic supraoptic nucleus (SON) secrete vasopressin and oxytocin. With the use of whole-cell and nystatin-perforated patch recordings of MCNs in current- and voltage-clamp modes, we show that high-frequency stimulation (HFS, 10-200 Hz) of excitatory afferents induces increases in the frequency and amplitude of 2,3-dioxo-6-nitro-1,2,3, 4-tetrahydrobenzo(f)quinoxaline-7-sulfonamide (NBQX)-sensitive miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents (mEPSCs) lasting up to 20 min. This synaptic enhancement, referred to as short-term potentiation (STP), could be induced repeatedly; required tetrodotoxin (TTX)-dependent action potentials to initiate, but not to maintain; and was independent of postsynaptic membrane potential, N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, or retrograde neurohypophyseal neuropeptide release. STP was not accompanied by changes in the conductance of the MCNs or in the responsiveness of the postsynaptic non-NMDA receptors, as revealed by brief application of alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) and kainate. mEPSCs showed similar rise times before and after HFS and analysis of amplitude distributions of mEPSCs revealed one or more peaks pre-HFS and the appearance of additional peaks post-HFS, which were equidistant from the first peak. STP of mEPSCs was not associated with enhanced evoked responses, but was associated with an NBQX-sensitive increase in spontaneous activity of MCNs. Thus we have identified a particularly long-lasting potentiation of excitatory synapses in the SON, which has a presynaptic locus, is dissociated from changes in evoked release, and which regulates postsynaptic cell excitability.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmacy, Kuwait University, Safat 13110, Kuwait.
authors.forename: S B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Kombian
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirasawa
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mouginot
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Q J
authors.initials: QJ
authors.lastname: Pittman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D019706:Excitatory Postsynaptic Potentials / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D018756:GABA Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D010852:Picrotoxin / Q000494:pharmacology; D011810:Quinoxalines / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013495:Supraoptic Nucleus / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D009435:Synaptic Transmission / Q000502:physiology*; D013779:Tetrodotoxin / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; D018756:GABA Antagonists; D010852:Picrotoxin; D011810:Quinoxalines; D013779:Tetrodotoxin; C062865:2,3-dioxo-6-nitro-7-sulfamoylbenzo(f)quinoxaline