title: T-type calcium channels in synaptic plasticity.
abstract: The role of T-type calcium currents is rarely considered in the extensive literature covering the mechanisms of long-term synaptic plasticity. This situation reflects the lack of suitable T-type channel antagonists that till recently has hampered investigations of the functional roles of these channels. However, with the development of new pharmacological and genetic tools, a clear involvement of T-type channels in synaptic plasticity is starting to emerge. Here, we review a number of studies showing that T-type channels participate to numerous homo- and hetero-synaptic plasticity mechanisms that involve different molecular partners and both pre- and post-synaptic modifications. The existence of T-channel dependent and independent plasticity at the same synapse strongly suggests a subcellular localization of these channels and their partners that allows specific interactions. Moreover, we illustrate the functional importance of T-channel dependent synaptic plasticity in neocortex and thalamus.
authors.affiliation: a Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC) UM119, CNRS UMR8246, INSERM U1130, Neuroscience Paris Seine (NPS) , Paris , France.
authors.forename: Nathalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Leresche
authors.affiliation: a Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC) UM119, CNRS UMR8246, INSERM U1130, Neuroscience Paris Seine (NPS) , Paris , France.
authors.forename: Régis C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Lambert
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism; D020747:Calcium Channels, T-Type / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D015640:Ion Channel Gating; D008959:Models, Neurological; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity; D012890:Sleep
chemical_list: D020747:Calcium Channels, T-Type; D002118:Calcium
keywords: Cav3.1; Cav3.2; Cav3.3; long-term depression; long-term potentiation; neuron; synapse; thalamus; visual system