Modulation by pregnenolone sulfate of filtering properties in the hippocampal trisynaptic circuit.

Short-term synaptic plasticity alters synaptic efficacy on a timescale that is relevant to encoding information in spike trains. The dynamics of this plasticity, combined with that of the feedback and feedforward contributions of local interneurons, impose frequency-dependent properties on neuronal networks with implications for nervous system function. The trisynaptic network of the hippocampus is especially well suited to selectively filter components of frequency-dependent signals that are transmitted from the entorhinal cortex. We measured presynaptic [Ca(2+)](i) in perforant path, mossy fiber, or Schaffer collateral terminals while simultaneously measuring field potentials of principal cells of the dentate, CA3, or CA1 synaptic fields over a range of stimulus frequencies of 2 to 77 Hz. In all three synaptic fields, the average [Ca(2+)](i) during a 500 ms stimulus train rose monotonically with stimulus frequency. The average population spike amplitude during this stimulus train, however, exhibited a non-linear relationship to frequency that was distinct for each of the three synaptic fields. The dentate synaptic field exhibited the characteristics of a low pass filter, while both CA synaptic fields had bandpass filter characteristics with a gain that was greater than 1 in the passband frequencies. Importantly, alteration of the dynamic properties of this network could significantly impact information processing performed by the hippocampus. Pregnenolone sulfate (PregS), has frequency-dependent effects on paired- and multipulse plasticity in the dentate and CA1 synaptic fields of the hippocampal formation. We investigated the PregS-dependent modulation of the dynamic properties of transmission by the principal cells of the three hippocampal synaptic fields. Importantly, PregS is capable of altering the pattern separation capabilities that may underlie hippocampal information processing.

Developmental changes in presynaptic Ca(2 +) clearance kinetics and synaptic plasticity in mouse Schaffer collateral terminals.

Presynaptic Ca(2+) influx pathways, cytoplasmic Ca(2+) buffering proteins and Ca(2+) extrusion processes undergo considerable change during the first postnatal month in rodent neurons. These changes may be critical in establishing short-term plasticity at maturing presynaptic terminals where neurotransmitter release is directly dependent on the dynamics of cytoplasmic residual Ca(2+) ([Ca(2+)](res)). In particular, the robust paired-pulse facilitation characteristic of adult neurons is almost entirely lacking in newborns. To examine developmental changes in processes controlling [Ca(2+)](res), we measured the timecourse of [Ca(2+)](res) decay in presynaptic terminals of Schaffer collateral to CA1 synapses in acute hippocampal slices following single and paired orthodromic stimuli in the stratum radiatum. Developmental changes were observed in both the rise time and slow exponential decay components of the response to single stimuli such that this decay was larger and faster in the adult. Furthermore, we observed a greater caffeine-sensitive basal Ca(2+) store, which was differentially affected when active uptake into the endoplasmic reticulum was blocked, in the presynaptic fields of the Schaffer collateral to CA1 terminals of P6 and younger mice when compared to adults. These transitions in [Ca(2+)](res) dynamics occurred gradually over the first weeks of postnatal life and correlated with changes in short-term plasticity.

Maturation of Schaffer collateral synapses generates a phenotype of unreliable basal evoked release and very reliable facilitated release.

Short-term synaptic plasticity undergoes important age-dependent changes that have crucial implications during the development of the nervous system. Paired-pulse facilitation is a form of short-term synaptic plasticity by which the response to the second of two temporally-paired stimuli is larger and more reliable than the response to the first stimulus. In this study, a paired-pulse minimal stimulation technique was used to measure the probability and quantal amplitude of synaptic release at hippocampal synapses from 12-16-day-old (young) and 7-9-week-old (adult) rats. In order to assess the contribution of temperature-dependent processes, we carried out experiments at both room temperature and at near physiological temperature. We report here that neither temperature nor maturation affected the low basal evoked release probability and quantal amplitude of release. However, the warmer temperature revealed a unique developmental increase in facilitated evoked release probability and quantal amplitude of release. As a result, although both basal evoked release and facilitated release are rather unreliable in synapses from young animals, the maturation process at near physiological temperature generates a phenotype with unreliable basal evoked release and highly reliable facilitated release.

Modulation of glutamatergic transmission by sulfated steroids: role in fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

It is well established that sulfated steroids regulate synaptic transmission by altering the function of postsynaptic neurotransmitter receptors. In recent years, evidence from several laboratories indicates that these agents also regulate glutamatergic synaptic transmission at the presynaptic level in an age-dependent manner. In developing neurons, pregnenolone sulfate (PREGS) increases the probability of glutamate release, as evidenced by an increase in the frequency of AMPA receptor-mediated miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents and a decrease in paired-pulse facilitation. In hippocampal slices from postnatal day 3-5 rats, this effect is mediated by an increase in Ca(2+) levels in the axonal terminal that depends on presynaptic NMDA receptors. This is followed by delayed potentiation of postsynaptic AMPA receptor currents. Importantly, depolarization of postsynaptic neurons, inhibition of hydroxysteroid sulfatase activity and acute exposure to ethanol mimics the effect of exogenous PREGS application. This developmental form of synaptic plasticity cannot be observed in slices from rats older than postnatal day 6, when presynaptic NMDA receptors are no longer expressed in CA1 hippocampal region. Both in the CA1 hippocampal region and the dentate gyrus of more mature rats, PREGS, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate and hydroxysteroid sulfatase inhibitors increase paired-pulse facilitation, without affecting basal glutamate release probability. This effect depends on activation of sigma(1)-like receptors and G(i/o) and involves a target in the release machinery that is downstream of residual Ca(2+). These presynaptic actions of sulfated steroids could play important roles in physiological processes ranging from synapse maturation to learning and memory, as well as pathophysiological conditions such as fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

Alterations in mossy fiber physiology and GAP-43 expression and function in transgenic mice overexpressing HuD.

HuD is a neuronal RNA-binding protein associated with the stabilization of mRNAs for GAP-43 and other neuronal proteins that are important for nervous system development and learning and memory mechanisms. To better understand the function of this protein, we generated transgenic mice expressing human HuD (HuD-Tg) in adult forebrain neurons. We have previously shown that expression of HuD in adult dentate granule cells results in an abnormal accumulation of GAP-43 mRNA via posttranscriptional mechanisms. Here we show that this mRNA accumulation leads to the ectopic expression of GAP-43 protein in mossy fibers. Electrophysiological analyses of the mossy fiber to CA3 synapse of HuD-Tg mice revealed increases in paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) at short interpulse intervals and no change in long-term potentiation (LTP). Presynaptic calcium transients at the same synapses exhibited faster time constants of decay, suggesting a decrease in the endogenous Ca(2+) buffer capacity of mossy fiber terminals of HuD-Tg mice. Under resting conditions, GAP-43 binds very tightly to calmodulin sequestering it and then releasing it upon PKC-dependent phosphorylation. Therefore, subsequent studies examined the extent of GAP-43 phosphorylation and its association to calmodulin. We found that despite the increased GAP-43 expression in HuD-Tg mice, the levels of PKC-phosphorylated GAP-43 were decreased in these animals. Furthermore, in agreement with the increased proportion of nonphosphorylated GAP-43, HuD-Tg mice showed increased binding of calmodulin to this protein. These results suggest that a significant amount of calmodulin may be trapped in an inactive state, unable to bind free calcium, and activate downstream signaling pathways. In conclusion, we propose that an unregulated expression of HuD disrupts mossy fiber physiology in adult mice in part by altering the expression and phosphorylation of GAP-43 and the amount of free calmodulin available at the synaptic terminal.

Genetic ablation of the t-SNARE SNAP-25 distinguishes mechanisms of neuroexocytosis.

Axon outgrowth during development and neurotransmitter release depends on exocytotic mechanisms, although what protein machinery is common to or differentiates these processes remains unclear. Here we show that the neural t-SNARE (target-membrane-associated-soluble N-ethylmaleimide fusion protein attachment protein (SNAP) receptor) SNAP-25 is not required for nerve growth or stimulus-independent neurotransmitter release, but is essential for evoked synaptic transmission at neuromuscular junctions and central synapses. These results demonstrate that the development of neurotransmission requires the recruitment of a specialized SNARE core complex to meet the demands of regulated exocytosis.

Neurosteroid-induced plasticity of immature synapses via retrograde modulation of presynaptic NMDA receptors.

Neurosteroids are produced de novo in neuronal and glial cells, which begin to express steroidogenic enzymes early in development. Studies suggest that neurosteroids may play important roles in neuronal circuit maturation via autocrine and/or paracrine actions. However, the mechanism of action of these agents is not fully understood. We report here that the excitatory neurosteroid pregnenolone sulfate induces a long-lasting strengthening of AMPA receptor-mediated synaptic transmission in rat hippocampal neurons during a restricted developmental period. Using the acute hippocampal slice preparation and patch-clamp electrophysiological techniques, we found that pregnenolone sulfate increases the frequency of AMPA-mediated miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents in CA1 pyramidal neurons. This effect could not be observed in slices from rats older than postnatal day 5. The mechanism of action of pregnenolone sulfate involved a short-term increase in the probability of glutamate release, and this effect is likely mediated by presynaptic NMDA receptors containing the NR2D subunit, which is transiently expressed in the hippocampus. The increase in glutamate release triggered a long-term enhancement of AMPA receptor function that requires activation of postsynaptic NMDA receptors containing NR2B subunits. Importantly, synaptic strengthening could also be triggered by postsynaptic neuron depolarization, and an anti-pregnenolone sulfate antibody scavenger blocked this effect. This finding indicates that a pregnenolone sulfate-like neurosteroid is a previously unrecognized retrograde messenger that is released in an activity-dependent manner during development.

Developmentally regulated switch in alternatively spliced SNAP-25 isoforms alters facilitation of synaptic transmission.

Although the basic molecular components that promote regulated neurotransmitter release are well established, the contribution of these proteins as regulators of the plasticity of neurotransmission and refinement of synaptic connectivity during development is elaborated less fully. For example, during the period of synaptic growth and maturation in brain, the expression of synaptosomal protein 25 kDa (SNAP-25), a neuronal t-SNARE (soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor) essential for action potential-dependent neuroexocytosis, is altered through alternative splicing of pre-mRNA transcripts. We addressed the role of the two splice-variant isoforms of SNAP-25 with a targeted mouse mutation that impairs the shift from SNAP-25a to SNAP-25b. Most of these mutant mice die between 3 and 5 weeks of age, which coincides with the time when SNAP-25b expression normally reaches mature levels in brain and synapse formation is essentially completed. The altered expression of these SNAP-25 isoforms influences short-term synaptic function by affecting facilitation but not the initial probability of release. This suggests that mechanisms controlling alternative splicing between SNAP-25 isoforms contribute to a molecular switch important for survival that helps to guide the transition from immature to mature synaptic connections, as well as synapse regrowth and remodeling after neural injury.

Normal development of embryonic thalamocortical connectivity in the absence of evoked synaptic activity.

This study is concerned with the role of impulse activity and synaptic transmission in early thalamocortical development. Disruption of the gene encoding SNAP-25, a component of the soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein (SNAP) receptor complex required for regulated neuroexocytosis, eliminates evoked but not spontaneous neurotransmitter release (Washbourne et al., 2002). The Snap25 null mutant mouse provides an opportunity to test whether synaptic activity is required for prenatal neural development. We found that evoked release is not needed for at least the gross formation of the embryonic forebrain, because the major features of the diencephalon and telencephalon were normal in the null mutant mouse. However, half of the homozygous mutants showed undulation of the cortical plate, which in the most severely affected brains was accompanied by a marked reduction of calbindin-immunoreactive neurons. Carbocyanine dye tracing of the thalamocortical fiber pathway revealed normal growth kinetics and fasciculation patterns between embryonic days 17.5 and 19. As in normal mice, mutant thalamocortical axons reach the cortex, accumulate below the cortical plate, and then start to extend side-branches in the subplate and deep cortical plate. Multiple carbocyanine dye placements in the cortical convexity revealed normal overall topography of both early thalamocortical and corticofugal projections. Electrophysiological recordings from thalamocortical slices confirmed that thalamic axons were capable of conducting action potentials to the cortex. Thus, our data suggest that axonal growth and early topographic arrangement of these fiber pathways do not rely on activity-dependent mechanisms requiring evoked neurotransmitter release. Intercellular communication mediated by constitutive secretion of transmitters or growth factors, however, might play a part.

Neurosteroid paradoxical enhancement of paired-pulse inhibition through paired-pulse facilitation of inhibitory circuits in dentate granule cells.

Neurosteroids are produced in the brain independently of peripheral endocrine glands to act locally in the nervous system. They exert potent promnesic effects and play significant roles in mental health-related disorders. In part, neurosteroids act by affecting ligand-gated ion channels and metabotropic receptors through rapid non-genomic processes. We have previously demonstrated that neurosteroids also affect synaptic transmission presynaptically in the CA1 region of the hippocampus. Here we describe the effects of the most abundant neurosteroid in the rodent brain, pregnenolone sulfate (PregS), on signal processing in the dentate subfield of the hippocampus. We show that PregS acts presynaptically at low concentrations (300 nM) to enhance paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) in perforant pathway terminals on dentate granule cells. Similar effects were found with two steroid sulfatase inhibitors demonstrating a potential contribution of endogenous steroids to dentate synaptic plasticity. This enhanced presynaptic facilitation paradoxically increases paired-pulse inhibition (PPI) at short interpulse intervals. Based on these data, a model of dentate gyrus circuit interactions is proposed for the presynaptic action of PregS on the filtering dynamics of the dentate subfield at frequencies similar to those of the endogenous signals from the entorhinal cortex. These modeling studies are consistent with experimental measurements demonstrating positive modulation by PregS at low frequencies and negative modulation at high frequencies. These studies show an important role for the presynaptic action of neurosteroids in modulating input signals to the hippocampus.

Pregnenolone sulfate acts through a G-protein-coupled sigma1-like receptor to enhance short term facilitation in adult hippocampal neurons.

Neurosteroids have been linked to cognitive performance, and their levels are altered in neuropsychiatric diseases. These neuromodulators are produced in the brain where they have important effects on synaptic transmission at postsynaptic gamma-amino-butyric acid receptors and N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors and at presynaptic sites. We previously found, in cultured neonatal hippocampal neurons, that the neurosteroid, pregnenolone sulfate, acts presynaptically through a sigma1-like receptor to modulate basal glutamate release. The present study was designed to test whether pregnenolone sulfate acts through a similar presynaptic receptor in adult hippocampal neurons. The sigma1-receptor agonist, 2-(4-morpholino)ethyl-1-phenylcyclohexane-1-carboxylate, enhanced paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) by a similar extent to that which we had previously reported for pregnenolone sulfate. The sigma1-receptor antagonists, 1-(4-Iodophenyl)-3-(2-adamantyl)guanidine and 1[2-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)ethyl]-4-methylpiperazine, blocked the pregnenolone sulfate enhancement of PPF as did pretreatment of slices in pertussis toxin. We conclude that pregnenolone sulfate acts through a Gi/o-coupled sigma1-like receptor to enhance short-term presynaptic facilitation onto adult hippocampal CA1 neurons.

Cocaine inhibits 5-HT3 receptor function in neurons from transgenic mice overexpressing the receptor.

Studies have shown that cocaine alters the function of recombinant 5-HT(3) receptors and that behavioral responses to cocaine are affected by 5-HT(3) receptor ligands. However, the actions of cocaine on brain 5-HT(3) receptors have not been characterized because these receptors are not abundantly expressed in most neuronal populations. We examined the effect of cocaine on 5-HT(3) receptor function in cultured hippocampal neurons from transgenic mice overexpressing the receptor. Cocaine competitively inhibited 5-HT(3) receptors with an IC(50) of approximately 4 microM, indicating that brain 5-HT(3) receptors are important targets for the actions of this commonly abused substance.

Neurosteroids enhance bandpass filter characteristics of the rat Schaffer collateral-to-CA1 synapse.

Neurosteroids are important modulators of synaptic activity in the mammalian central nervous system. We have shown previously that the neurosteroid, pregnenolone sulfate (PREGS) enhances paired-pulse facilitation at the Schaffer collateral-to-CA1 synapse in rat hippocampal slices. Here we show that PREGS enhances the facilitation of postsynaptic potentials (PSPs) during a 300 ms train of repetitive stimuli at frequencies between 10 and 50 Hz. At higher or lower frequencies, however, PREGS does not affect the PSPs produced by repetitive stimuli. This enhancement of the bandpass filtering characteristic of a central synapse by a naturally occurring neurosteroid could selectively influence transmission at bursting or other highly active synapses.

Gene-environment interactions affect long-term depression (LTD) through changes in dopamine receptor affinity in Snap25 deficient mice.

Genes and environmental conditions interact in the development of cognitive capacities and each plays an important role in neuropsychiatric disorders such as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and schizophrenia. Multiple studies have indicated that the gene for the SNARE protein SNAP-25 is a candidate susceptibility gene for ADHD, as well as schizophrenia, while maternal smoking is a candidate environmental risk factor for ADHD. We utilized mice heterozygous for a Snap25 null allele and deficient in SNAP-25 expression to model genetic effects in combination with prenatal exposure to nicotine to explore genetic and environmental interactions in synaptic plasticity and behavior. We show that SNAP-25 deficient mice exposed to prenatal nicotine exhibit hyperactivity and deficits in social interaction. Using a high frequency stimulus electrophysiological paradigm for long-term depression (LTD) induction, we examined the roles of dopaminergic D2 receptors (D2Rs) and cannabinoid CB1 receptors (CB1Rs), both critical for LTD induction in the striatum. We found that prenatal exposure to nicotine in Snap25 heterozygote null mice produced a deficit in the D2R-dependent induction of LTD, although CB1R regulation of plasticity was not impaired. We also show that prenatal nicotine exposure altered the affinity and/or receptor coupling of D2Rs, but not the number of these receptors in heterozygote null Snap25 mutants. These results refine the observations made in the coloboma mouse mutant, a proposed mouse model of ADHD, and illustrate how gene×environmental influences can interact to perturb neural functions that regulate behavior.

GABA(A) receptor mediated inhibition contributes to corticostriatal frequency filtering.

The striatum plays an important role in the initiation and learning of skilled motor behavior [6] and receives topographic input from most areas of the cortex. Cortical afferents make divergent contact with many striatal medium spiny neurons while individual medium spiny neurons receive tens of thousands of these glutamatergic synapses [13]. Temporal filtering of frequency information within synaptic fields plays an important role in the processing of neuronal signals. We have previously shown differential filtering characteristics within CA1, CA3, and the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus [26] and have now extended these studies to the cortical input to the dorsal striatum in order to address the network filtering characteristics in this important synaptic field. We measured field potentials of striatal medium spiny neurons in response to layer V cortical input over a range of stimulus frequencies from 2Hz to 100Hz. The average population spike amplitude in response to these stimulus trains exhibited a non-linear relationship to frequency, with characteristics of a low pass filter. In order to assess potential modulation of these filter properties, we examined the frequency response in the presence of antagonists to CB1, D2, nACh, and GABA(A) receptors, which are all known to be expressed at these synapses [13]. Of these, only GABA(A) receptor antagonists significantly modulated the frequency filtering characteristics over the examined frequency range. High frequency stimulation induces long term plasticity at corticostriatal synapses [4] and this process is strengthened when GABA(A) receptors are blocked [7,20,29]. Our results suggest a model whereby a temporary decrease in GABA level would modulate the filtering parameters of the corticostriatal circuit, allowing a more robust induction of high frequency-dependent plasticity.

Presynaptic residual calcium and synaptic facilitation at hippocampal synapses of mice with altered expression of SNAP-25.

Paired pulse facilitation (PPF) is a form of short-term synaptic plasticity that results from an interaction of residual presynaptic Ca(2+) ([Ca(2+)](res)), number of release-competent vesicles, and the sensitivity of the vesicle release mechanisms to Ca(2+). While PPF is predominant at hippocampal Schaffer collateral-CA1 (SC-CA1) synapses, facilitation is greater in adult mice (designated Tkneo) that over express an isoform of the plasma membrane-targeted SNARE protein, SNAP-25a, which is normally predominantly expressed in juvenile animals. SNAP-25 is essential for action potential-dependent neuroexocytosis, yet the significance of the shift between the alternatively spliced variants SNAP-25a and SNAP-25b is not fully understood. This alteration of a key component of the protein machinery required for neurotransmitter release in Tkneo mice, therefore, provides a useful tool to further investigate presynaptic mechanisms that influence short-term plasticity. To explore this link between SNAP-25 and PPF, we simultaneously measured postsynaptic potentials and presynaptic [Ca(2+)](res) during paired-pulses in adult Tkneo, heterozygote null (HET), and wild type (WT) mice. We demonstrate that enhanced PPF is maintained at mature hippocampal synapses of Tkneo mice that predominantly express SNAP-25a, and that [Ca(2+)](res) kinetics are altered at synapses of Tkneo and HET mice, both of which exhibit reduced levels of total SNAP-25 expression. To evaluate the role of SNAP-25 in short-term plasticity and [Ca(2+)](res) regulation, we applied a vesicular release probability model for neurotransmission. Our results suggest that the isoform expression and total level of SNAP-25 affect both [Ca(2+)](res) dynamics and the ability of releasable vesicles to enter into a facilitated state.

Contributions of SERCA pump and ryanodine-sensitive stores to presynaptic residual Ca2+.

The presynaptic Ca2+ signal, which triggers vesicle release, disperses to a broadly distributed residual [Ca2+] ([Ca2+](res)) that plays an important role in synaptic plasticity. We have previously reported a slowing in the decay timecourse of [Ca2+](res) during the second of paired pulses. In this study, we investigated the contributions of organelle and plasma membrane Ca2+ flux pathways to the reduction of effectiveness of [Ca2+](res) clearance during short-term plasticity in Schaffer collateral terminals in the CA1 field of the hippocampus. We show that the slowed decay timecourse is mainly the result of a transport-dependent Ca2+ clearance process; that presynaptic caffeine-sensitive Ca2+ stores are not functionally loaded in the unstimulated terminal, but that these stores can effectively take up Ca2+ even during high frequency trains of stimuli; and that a rate limiting step of sarco-endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA) kinetics following the first pulse is responsible for a large portion of the observed slowing of [Ca2+](res) clearance during the second pulse. We were able to accurately fit our [Ca2+](res) data with a kinetic model based on these observations and this model predicted a reduction in availability of unbound SERCA during paired pulses, but no saturation of Ca2+ buffer in the endoplasmic reticulum.

Neurosteroid-induced enhancement of short-term facilitation involves a component downstream from presynaptic calcium in hippocampal slices.

We used Magnesium Green AM to measure Ca(2+) transients in Schaffer collateral presynaptic terminals simultaneously with postsynaptic field potentials (fEPSPs) to investigate the mechanism of neurosteroid enhancement of short-term synaptic facilitation. Measurement of [Ca(2+)](i), isolated to presynaptic events, using the fluorescence ratio (DeltaF/F(0)) demonstrated that at a constant stimulus intensity there was no change in the excitability of presynaptic fibres between paired stimuli or between ACSF and 1 mum pregnenolone sulphate (PREGS). Paired-pulse facilitation (PPF) was correlated with residual Ca(2+) ([Ca(2+)](res)), and there was an additional increase in the integralDeltaF/F(0) for the [Ca(2+)](res)-subtracted response to the second of paired stimuli, resulting primarily from a slowing of the decay time constant. In addition to the role of presynaptic [Ca(2+)](res) in PPF, we observed a decrease in EC(50) and a greater maximum for Hill function fits to fEPSP versus DeltaF/F(0) during the second of paired responses. The enhancement of fEPSP PPF by PREGS did not result from an increase of DeltaF/F(0). The data presented here support a PREGS-induced increase in presynaptic glutamate release from the second, but not the first, of a pair of stimuli for a given presynaptic [Ca(2+)] because: (a) there is actually a decrease in the integralDeltaF/F(0) of the [Ca(2+)](res)-subtracted second response over that seen in ACSF; (b) PREGS causes no change in presynaptic Ca(2+) buffering; and (c) there is a decrease in EC(50) and an increase of y(max) in the Hill function fits to DeltaF/F(0) versus fEPSP data. We hypothesize that PREGS enhances short-term facilitation by acting on the Ca(2+)-dependent vesicle release machinery and that this mechanism plays a role in the cognitive effects of this sulphated neurosteroid.

Reduced molecular expression of K(+) channel proteins in vascular smooth muscle from rats made hypertensive with N{omega}-nitro-L-arginine.

Smooth muscle membrane potential (E(m)) depends on K(+) channels, and arteries from rats made hypertensive with N(omega)-nitro-l-arginine (LHR) are depolarized compared with control. We hypothesized that decreased K(+) channel function, due to decreased K(+) channel protein expression, underlies E(m) depolarization. Furthermore, K(+) channel blockers should move control E(m) (-46 +/- 1 mV) toward that in LHR (-37 +/- 2 mV) and normalize contraction. The E(m) vs. K(+) relationship was less steep in LHR (23 +/- 2 vs. 28 +/- 1 mV/log K(+) concentration), and contractile sensitivity to K(+) was increased (EC(50) = 37 +/- 1 vs. 23 +/- 1 mM). Iberiotoxin (10 nM), an inhibitor of large-conductance Ca(2+)-activated K(+) (BK(Ca)) channels, depolarized control and LHR E(m) to -35 +/- 1 and -30 +/- 2 mV, respectively; however, effects on K(+) sensitivity were more profound in LHR (EC(50) = 25 +/- 2 vs. 15 +/- 3 mM). The voltage-dependent K(+) (K(V)) channel blocker 4-aminopyridine (3 mM) depolarized control E(m) to the level of LHR (-28 +/- 1 vs. -28 +/- 1 mV); however, effects on K(+) sensitivity were greater in LHR (EC(50) = 17 +/- 4 vs. 4 +/- 4 mM). Western blots revealed reduced BK(Ca) and K(V)1.5 channel expression in LHR arteries. The findings suggest that diminished expression of K(+) channels contributes to depolarization and enhanced contractile sensitivity. These conclusions are supported by direct electrophysiological assessment of BK(Ca) and K(V) channel function in control and LHR smooth muscle cells.

Neurosteroid modulation of glutamate release in hippocampal neurons: lack of an effect of a chronic prenatal ethanol exposure paradigm.

BACKGROUND: Pregnenolone sulfate (PREGS) is a promnesic neurosteroid that is abundantly expressed in the hippocampus of rodents. Studies have shown that the modulation of postsynaptic ligand-gated ion channels by this neurosteroid is impaired in preparations from the brains of fetal ethanol-exposed animals. In this study, we examined whether the presynaptic actions of PREGS also are affected by exposure to ethanol in utero. METHODS: Rat dams were exposed to one of the following diets during pregnancy: (1) 5% ethanol liquid diet, (2) 0% ethanol liquid diet with pair-feeding, and (3) ad libitum controls. We then studied the presynaptic actions of PREGS on (1) alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionate (AMPA) receptor-mediated miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents (mEPSCs) recorded from cultured hippocampal neurons in the whole-cell patch-clamp configuration and (2) paired-pulse facilitation of NMDA receptor-dependent excitatory postsynaptic potentials that were intracellularly recorded from CA1 pyramidal neurons in hippocampal slices from adult rats. RESULTS: Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure affected neither basal mEPSC frequency nor its potentiation by PREGS. Basal paired-pulse facilitation (i.e., in the absence of PREGS) was unaffected by fetal ethanol exposure. Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure did not affect the PREGS-induced potentiation of paired-pulse facilitation. CONCLUSIONS: Chronic prenatal ethanol exposure does not affect the basal probability of glutamate release in immature or mature hippocampal neurons. Moreover, the presynaptic actions of the neurosteroid PREGS also are unaffected by this exposure. Given that modulation of glutamate release could have a role in the mechanism of the promnesic actions of this neurosteroid, future studies are warranted to determine whether PREGS can ameliorate learning and memory deficits in fetal ethanol-exposed animals.