LTP in cultured hippocampal-entorhinal cortex slices from young adult (P25-30) rats.
Cultured hippocampal neurons and immature organotypic slice cultures overcome temporal limitations of acute hippocampal slices and have been useful for investigating long-lasting plasticity. Difficulties with culturing adult neurons have restricted such studies to preparations from embryonic, perinatal, and juvenile tissue. By improving the methods for culturing and maintaining hippocampal-entorhinal cortex slices obtained from mature rats (P25-30), we show that their use in long-term electrophysiological investigations is feasible. Our cultured slices maintained an intact and functional trisynaptic cascade, normal synaptic function, and reliable long-term recording stability for at least 14 days in vitro. The electrophysiological properties and, in particular, the induction of long-term potentiation (LTP) in our mature organotypic slices were highly sensitive to dissection and tissue culture techniques. We present data describing the extracellular stimulation requirements for LTP-induction and its long-lasting maintenance (>4 h) at the Schaffer-collateral-CA1 synapse, and show that such changes in synaptic efficiency are NMDA receptor dependent. Our hippocampal-entorhinal cortex cultures from mature tissue can retain the electrophysiological properties required for long-term plasticity for several weeks in vitro.
Leutgeb
Jill K
JK
Department of Neurophysiology, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Brenneckestr. 6, 39118 Magdeburg, Germany.
Frey
Julietta U
JU
Behnisch
Thomas
T
D015763:2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D004594:Electrophysiology; D018728:Entorhinal Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D019706:Excitatory Postsynaptic Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D018756:GABA Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D015151:Immunoblotting; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D017774:Long-Term Potentiation / Q000502:physiology*; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000502:physiology; D009924:Organ Culture Techniques; D010852:Picrotoxin / Q000494:pharmacology; D010879:Piperazines / Q000494:pharmacology; D017966:Pyramidal Cells / Q000502:physiology; D011810:Quinoxalines / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D018091:Receptors, AMPA / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors
D015763:2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; D018756:GABA Antagonists; D010852:Picrotoxin; D010879:Piperazines; D011810:Quinoxalines; D018091:Receptors, AMPA; C062865:2,3-dioxo-6-nitro-7-sulfamoylbenzo(f)quinoxaline; C050592:3-(2-carboxypiperazin-4-yl)propyl-1-phosphonic acid