title: Selective revealing of gap junction currents in single inspiratory tracheal motor neurons.
abstract: Little is known about how gap junctions are involved in the respiratory-related or other types of physiological neuronal activity since physiologically active gap junction currents (GJCs) have never been characterized from single respiratory-related neurons or from single neurons of any other types. In the present study we hypothesized that GJCs could be selectively revealed from single neurons by elimination of transmembrane electrochemical gradients in voltage patch-clamp recording, and this hypothesis was tested in single inspiratory tracheal preganglionic vagal motor neurons (I-TPVMs). The results showed that GJCs were selectively revealed in all I-TPVMs when the transmembrane electrochemical gradients were eliminated in voltage patch-clamp recording, and were rhythmically activated by central inspiratory activity. Therefore, this method may be used as a fast way to detect GJCs within spontaneously active neuronal networks.
authors.affiliation: The State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Fudan University Shanghai Medical College, Shanghai 200032, China.
authors.forename: Yong-Hua
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Li-Li
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.forename: Ji-Jiang
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D017629:Gap Junctions / Q000502:physiology*; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D014132:Trachea / Q000166:cytology*