title: Age and experience dependence of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor-independent long-term potentiation in rat visual cortex.
abstract: Dark rearing prolongs the critical period for experience-dependent modification of visual cortical functions. To test whether long-term potentiation (LTP) could potentially underlie this modification, we studied the age and experience dependence of LTP, induced in layer 2/3 cells by layer 4 stimulation continued for 15 min at 2 Hz, in rat visual cortical slices. This LTP was independent of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) activation, but it likely required Ni(2+)-sensitive Ca(2+) channel activation for induction. LTP occurred frequently during development, but rarely in adulthood. Dark rearing prevented this developmental decline. These age- and experience-dependent changes were demonstrated in both excitatory postsynaptic potentials recorded from pyramidal cells under a local blockade of inhibition and extracellular field potentials. These results suggest the possible involvement of NMDAR-independent LTP in the experience-dependent development of visual cortex.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Nagoya University School of Medicine, 466-8550, Nagoya, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomohisa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ohmura
authors.forename: Ren
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ming
authors.forename: Yumiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yoshimura
authors.forename: Yukio
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Komatsu
mesh_terms: D015763:2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate / Q000494:pharmacology; D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001640:Bicuculline / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D003624:Darkness; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D019706:Excitatory Postsynaptic Potentials / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D058787:GABA-A Receptor Antagonists; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D017774:Long-Term Potentiation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D009532:Nickel / Q000494:pharmacology; D017966:Pyramidal Cells / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D011810:Quinoxalines / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000378:metabolism*; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; D058787:GABA-A Receptor Antagonists; D011810:Quinoxalines; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; C017069:bicuculline methiodide; C056723:FG 9041; D015763:2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate; D009532:Nickel; D001640:Bicuculline