title: A role for the protein phosphatase 2B in altered hippocampal synaptic plasticity in the aged rat.
abstract: Synaptic plasticity following NMDA application on hippocampal slices from young (3-5 months) and aged (24-27 months) rats was compared. In young rats, NMDA (20 microM) induced opposite effects depending on the duration of the application. A short (1 min) or long (5 min) application induced a long-term depression of synaptic activity while a 3 min application induced a potentiation. In aged rats, however, NMDA application always induced depression, regardless of the duration. To identify mechanisms which could explain the difference observed between young and aged rats, we explored changes in NMDA receptor activation and changes in kinase/phosphatase balance. We first demonstrate that the potentiation present in slices from young rats was not restored in aged rats by exogenous application of the co-agonist of NMDA receptor d-serine (which compensates for the changes in NMDAR activation seen in aged rats). This suggested that alterations in synaptic plasticity activation mainly involve intracellular mechanisms. We next showed that the participation of the kinases PKA and CaMKII in the NMDA-induced potentiation in young rats is negligible. Finally, we determined the consequences of phosphatase inhibition in aged rats. Incubation of slices in okadaic acid (a PP1/PP2B antagonist) did not affect the depression induced by a 3min NMDA application in aged rats. The PP2B antagonist FK506 restored potentiation in aged rats (3 min NMDA application). In hippocampal neurons from aged rats, a depression is always observed, suggesting a preferential activation of PP2B by NMDA in these neurons.
authors.affiliation: INSERM U549, Neurobiologie de la croissance et de la sénescence, 2 ter rue d'Alésia, 75014 Paris, France. jouvenc@broca.inserm.fr
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jouvenceau
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dutar
mesh_terms: D015763:2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate / Q000494:pharmacology; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D019703:Calcineurin / Q000502:physiology*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004347:Drug Interactions; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D005071:Evoked Potentials / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D018690:Excitatory Amino Acid Agonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000166:cytology*; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D016202:N-Methylaspartate / Q000494:pharmacology; D009433:Neural Inhibition / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D012694:Serine / Q000494:pharmacology; D013569:Synapses / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D018690:Excitatory Amino Acid Agonists; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; D012694:Serine; D016202:N-Methylaspartate; D015763:2-Amino-5-phosphonovalerate; D019703:Calcineurin