title: Maturation of membrane properties of neurons in the rat deep cerebellar nuclei.
abstract: Patch clamp recordings of neurons in the adult rat deep cerebellar nuclei have been limited by the availability of viable brain slices. Using a new slicing technique, this study was designed to explore the maturation of membrane properties of neurons in the deep cerebellar nuclei (DCN)-an area involved in rat eyeblink conditioning. Compared to whole-cell current-clamp recordings in DCN in rat pups at postnatal day 16 (P16) to P21, recordings from weanling rats at P22-P40 revealed a number of significant changes including an increase in the amplitude of the afterhyperpolarization (AHP)-an index of membrane excitability which has been shown to be important for eyeblink conditioning-a prolonged interval between the first and second evoked action potential, and an increase in AHP amplitude for hyperpolarization-induced rebound spikes. This is the first report of developmental changes in membrane properties of DCN which may contribute to the ontogeny of eyeblink conditioning in the rat.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, West Virginia University School of Medicine, Morgantown, West Virginia, 26506; Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute, Morgantown, West Virginia, 26505.
authors.forename: Desheng
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Bernard G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Schreurs
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002529:Cerebellar Nuclei / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology*; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D020318:Rats, Long-Evans; D046509:Tissue Culture Techniques
keywords: after-hyperpolarization; cerebellar nuclear neurons; developmental changes; maturation; membrane property