title: Elevated postsynaptic [Ca2+]i and L-type calcium channel activity in aged hippocampal neurons: relationship to impaired synaptic plasticity.
abstract: Considerable evidence supports a Ca(2+) dysregulation hypothesis of brain aging and Alzheimer's disease. However, it is still not known whether (1) intracellular [Ca(2+)](i) is altered in aged brain neurons during synaptically activated neuronal activity; (2) altered [Ca(2+)](i) is directly correlated with impaired neuronal plasticity; or (3) the previously observed age-related increase in L-type voltage-sensitive Ca(2+) channel (L-VSCC) density in hippocampal neurons is sufficient to impair synaptic plasticity. Here, we used confocal microscopy to image [Ca(2+)](i) in single CA1 neurons in hippocampal slices of young-adult and aged rats during repetitive synaptic activation. Simultaneously, we recorded intracellular EPSP frequency facilitation (FF), a form of short-term synaptic plasticity that is impaired with aging and inversely correlated with cognitive function. Resting [Ca(2+)](i) did not differ clearly with age. Greater elevation of somatic [Ca(2+)](i) and greater depression of FF developed in aged neurons during 20 sec trains of 7 Hz synaptic activation, but only if the activation triggered repetitive action potentials for several seconds. Elevated [Ca(2+)](i) and FF also were negatively correlated in individual aged neurons. In addition, the selective L-VSCC agonist Bay K8644 increased the afterhyperpolarization and mimicked the depressive effects of aging on FF in young-adult neurons. Thus, during physiologically relevant firing patterns in aging neurons, postsynaptic Ca(2+) elevation is closely associated with altered neuronal plasticity. Moreover, selectively increasing postsynaptic L-VSCC activity, as occurs in aging, negatively regulated a form of short-term plasticity that enhances synaptic throughput. Together, the results elucidate novel processes that may contribute to impaired cognitive function in aging.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Biomedical Pharmacology, MS-307 University of Kentucky College of Medicine, Lexington, Kentucky 40536-0298, USA. othibau@uky.edu
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Thibault
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hadley
authors.forename: P W
authors.initials: PW
authors.lastname: Landfield
mesh_terms: D001498:3-Pyridinecarboxylic acid, 1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-5-nitro-4-(2-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)-, Methyl ester / Q000494:pharmacology; D000200:Action Potentials / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D000375:Aging / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D002120:Calcium Channel Agonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type / Q000378:metabolism*; D003712:Dendrites / Q000648:ultrastructure; D004558:Electric Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D019706:Excitatory Postsynaptic Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007424:Intracellular Fluid / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000502:physiology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D051381:Rats; D011916:Rats, Inbred F344; D013569:Synapses / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002120:Calcium Channel Agonists; D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D001498:3-Pyridinecarboxylic acid, 1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-5-nitro-4-(2-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)-, Methyl ester; D002118:Calcium