Somatosensory integration controlled by dynamic thalamocortical feed-forward inhibition.

The temporal features of tactile stimuli are faithfully represented by the activity of neurons in the somatosensory cortex. However, the cellular mechanisms that enable cortical neurons to report accurate temporal information are not known. Here, we show that in the rodent barrel cortex, the temporal window for integration of thalamic inputs is under the control of thalamocortical feed-forward inhibition and can vary from 1 to 10 ms. A single thalamic fiber can trigger feed-forward inhibition and contacts both excitatory and inhibitory cortical neurons. The dynamics of feed-forward inhibition exceed those of each individual synapse in the circuit and are captured by a simple disynaptic model of the thalamocortical projection. The variations in the integration window produce changes in the temporal precision of cortical responses to whisker stimulation. Hence, feed-forward inhibitory circuits, classically known to sharpen spatial contrast of tactile inputs, also increase the temporal resolution in the somatosensory cortex.

Disruption of glycine transporter 1 restricted to forebrain neurons is associated with a procognitive and antipsychotic phenotypic profile.

The NMDA receptor is thought to play a central role in some forms of neuronal plasticity, including the induction of long-term potentiation. NMDA receptor hypofunction can result in mnemonic impairment and has been implicated in the cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia. The activity of NMDA receptors is controlled by its endogenous coagonist glycine, and a local elevation of glycine levels is expected to enhance NMDA receptor function. Here, we achieved this by the generation of a novel mouse line (CamKIIalphaCre;Glyt1tm1.2fl/fl) with a neuron and forebrain selective disruption of glycine transporter 1 (GlyT1). The mutation led to a significant reduction of GlyT1 and a corresponding reduction of glycine reuptake in forebrain samples, without affecting NMDA receptor expression. NMDA (but not AMPA) receptor-evoked EPSCs recorded in hippocampal slices of mutant mice were 2.5 times of those recorded in littermate controls, suggesting that neuronal GlyT1 normally assumes a specific role in the regulation of NMDA receptor responses. Concomitantly, the mutants were less responsive to phencyclidine than controls. The mutation enhanced aversive Pavlovian conditioning without affecting spontaneous anxiety-like behavior in the elevated plus maze and augmented a form of attentional learning called latent inhibition in three different experimental paradigms: conditioned freezing, conditioned active avoidance, conditioned taste aversion. The CamKIIalphaCre;Glyt1tm1.2fl/fl mouse model thus suggests that augmentation of forebrain neuronal glycine transmission is promnesic and may also offer an effective therapeutic intervention against the cognitive and attentional impairments characteristic of schizophrenia.

Astrogliosis in epilepsy leads to overexpression of adenosine kinase, resulting in seizure aggravation.

Adenosine kinase (ADK) is considered to be the key regulator of the brain's endogenous anticonvulsant, adenosine. In adult brain, ADK is primarily expressed in a subpopulation of astrocytes and striking upregulation of ADK in these cells has been associated with astrogliosis after kainic acid-induced status epilepticus (KASE) in the kainic acid mouse model of temporal lobe epilepsy. To investigate the causal relationship between KASE-induced astrogliosis, upregulation of ADK and seizure activity, we have developed a novel mouse model [the Adktm1(-/-)-Tg(UbiAdk) mouse] lacking the endogenous astrocytic enzyme due to a targeted disruption of the endogenous gene, but containing an Adk transgene under the control of a human ubiquitin promoter. Mutant Adktm1(-/-)-Tg(UbiAdk) mice were characterized by increased brain ADK activity and constitutive overexpression of transgenic ADK throughout the brain, with particularly high levels in hippocampal pyramidal neurons. This ADK overexpression was associated with increased baseline levels of locomotion. Most importantly, two-thirds of the mutant mice analysed exhibited spontaneous seizure activity in the hippocampus and cortex. This was the direct consequence of transgene expression, since this seizure activity could be prevented by systemic application of the ADK inhibitor 5-iodotubercidin. Intrahippocampal injection of kainate in the mutant mice resulted in astrogliosis to the same extent as that observed in wild-type mice despite the absence of endogenous astrocytic ADK. Therefore, KASE-induced upregulation of endogenous ADK in wild-type mice is a consequence of astrogliosis. However, seizures in kainic acid-injected mutants displayed increased intra-ictal spike frequency compared with wild-type mice, indicating that, once epilepsy is established, increased levels of ADK aggravate seizure severity. We therefore conclude that therapeutic strategies that augment the adenosine system after astrogliosis-induced upregulation of ADK constitute a neurochemical rationale for the prevention of seizures in epilepsy.

Enhancement of the NMDA receptor function by reduction of glycine transporter-1 expression.

The occupation of the glycine binding-site is a prerequisite for NMDA receptor activation by glutamate. To analyze the regulation of NMDA receptor function by the glycine transporter 1 (GlyT1), we generated heterozygous constitutive GlyT1 knockout mice (GlyT1tm1.1(+/-)). These animals were fully viable. Using a newly generated antibody, the pattern of GlyT1 expression in brain was found to be unaltered in the mutants while the level of expression was strongly reduced in all brain regions, as shown immunohistochemically. In hippocampal slices the ratio of the peak amplitude of NMDA and AMPA receptor evoked excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs), recorded in CA1 pyramidal cells, was significantly enhanced by 36% in Glyt1tm1.1(+/-) compared to wild-type slices. The frequency and amplitude of AMPA miniature events in Glyt1tm1.1(+/-) mice were indistinguishable from those recorded in wild type. These results provide proof that the NMDA receptor function is enhanced by a reduction of GlyT1 expression. Thus, GlyT1 function is a controlling factor for an enhancement of the NMDA receptor response. These findings are of relevance for the development of GlyT1 inhibitory drugs.