title: Action potential-independent and nicotinic receptor-mediated concerted release of multiple quanta at hippocampal CA3-mossy fiber synapses.
abstract: Presynaptic action potential-independent transmitter release is a potential means of information transfer across synapses. We show that in the hippocampal mossy fiber boutons, activation of the alpha7-subtype of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (alpha7-nAChRs) results in a large increase in the amplitude of spontaneous events, resulting from concerted release of multiple quanta from the mossy fiber boutons. This amplitude increase is abolished at low temperatures. Activation of alpha7-nAChRs causes a rise in intraterminal calcium at mossy fiber boutons, involving ryanodine receptors. Regulation of concerted release requires the subsequent activation of presynaptic calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII). Activation of CaMKII is required to drive presynaptic action potential-independent transmission at the mossy fiber-CA3 pyramidal cell synapse. The effects of alpha7-nAChR activation are mediated by biologically relevant doses of nicotine. Our results demonstrate a novel form of synaptic plasticity mediated by presynaptic alpha7-nAChRs and store calcium that is temporally different and might respond to a different history of synaptic activity than that mediated by incoming action potentials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Biophysics and Neuroscience Program, University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center, Aurora, Colorado 80045, USA.
authors.forename: Geeta
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sharma
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Grybko
authors.forename: Sukumar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vijayaraghavan
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D019706:Excitatory Postsynaptic Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D019599:Mossy Fibers, Hippocampal / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D011978:Receptors, Nicotinic / Q000502:physiology*; D013569:Synapses / Q000502:physiology*; D009435:Synaptic Transmission / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D011978:Receptors, Nicotinic