Intrinsic plasticity complements LTP in parallel fiber input gain control in cerebellar Purkinje cells

Long-term depression (LTD) at the parallel fiber (PF)-to-cerebellar Purkinje cell (PC) synapse is implicated in the output of PCs, the sole output of the cerebellar cortex. In addition to synaptic plasticity, intrinsic excitability is also one of the components that determines PC output. Although long-term potentiation of intrinsic excitability (LTP-IE) has been suggested, it has yet to be investigated how PF-PC LTD modifies intrinsic excitability of PCs. Here, we show that pairing of the PF and climbing fiber (CF) for PF-PC LTD induction evokes LTD-IE in cerebellar PCs from male C57BL/6 mice. Interestingly, this intrinsic plasticity showed different kinetics from synaptic plasticity, but both forms of plasticity share Ca2+ signaling and protein kinase C pathway as their underlying mechanism. Although small-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ channels play important roles in LTP-IE, no direct implication has been found. After PF-PC LTD induction, neither the temporal summation of dendritic EPSP nor the power of spike frequency adaptation is changed, indicating that cerebellar LTD executes the information processing in a quantitative way without quality changes of synaptic integration and generation of output signals. Our results suggest that LTD-IE may have a synergistic effect with synaptic depression on the total net output of neurons by amplifying the modification of PF synaptic transmission.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Although the output of Purkinje cells (PCs) is a critical component of cerebellum-dependent learning and memory, the changes of PC excitability when synaptic LTD occurs are unclear. Here, we show that the induction of PF-PC LTD evokes LTD-IE in PCs. Our observation complements previous intrinsic plasticity phenomenon of long-term potentiation of intrinsic excitability (LTP-IE), providing evidence for the idea that intrinsic plasticity has bidirectionality as synaptic plasticity. LTD-IE occurs together with synaptic LTD and both phenomena are dependent on the Ca2+ signaling pathway. Furthermore, our findings raise the prospect that this synaptic and intrinsic plasticity acts synergistically in PCs to modify neuronal activity in the same direction when learning occurs.

Selective Engagement of Plasticity Mechanisms for Motor Memory Storage

Activity-Induced Long-Term Potentiation of Excitatory Synapses in Developing Zebrafish Retina In Vivo

Since its original description, the induction of synaptic long-term potentiation (LTP) has been known to be accompanied by a lasting increase in the intrinsic excitability (intrinsic plasticity) of hippocampal neurons. Recent evidence shows that dendritic excitability can be enhanced by an activity-dependent decrease in the activity of A-type K+ channels. In the present manuscript, we examined the role of A-type K+ channels in regulating intrinsic excitability of CA1 pyramidal neurons of the hippocampus after synapse-specific LTP induction. In electrophysiological recordings we found that LTP induced a potentiation of excitability which was accompanied by a two-phased change in A-type K+ channel activity recorded in nucleated patches from organotypic slices of rat hippocampus. Induction of LTP resulted in an immediate but short lasting hyperpolarization of the voltage-dependence of steady-state A-type K+ channel inactivation along with a progressive, long-lasting decrease in peak A-current density. Blocking clathrin-mediated endocytosis prevented the A-current decrease and most measures of intrinsic plasticity. These results suggest that two temporally distinct but overlapping mechanisms of A-channel downregulation together contribute to the plasticity of intrinsic excitability. Finally we show that intrinsic plasticity resulted in a global enhancement of EPSP-spike coupling.

We used realistic simulation approaches, based on fully active compartmental models, to study the cerebellum. The author summarizes some of the recent results that address cerebellar learning. Assuming that the long term depression (LTD) is the basis of learning in cerebellar Purkinje cells, two questions arise: what is a parallel fiber pattern and how can the occurrence of learned patterns be decoded from the Purkinje cell spike train? We applied network simulations of the granular layer using conductance based models of granule and Golgi cells to study the patterns of the parallel fiber activity in response to natural mossy fiber stimulation. Based on these simulations we predicted a sparse temporal coding by parallel fibers of complex spatial maps of mossy fiber input. We studied the pattern recognition by Purkinje cells in a realistic context, i.e. how to recognize the effect of depressed synapses on a spiking neuron which is spontaneously active most of the time. Using our standard Purkinje cell model we predict that parallel fiber patterns that have undergone LTD cause an increase in the Purkinje cell output instead of the decrease assumed by most cerebellar learning theories.

RAS-GRF1 is a guanine nucleotide exchange factor with the ability to activate RAS and RAC GTPases in response to elevated calcium levels. We previously showed that beginning at 1 month of age, RAS-GRF1 mediates NMDA-type glutamate receptor (NMDAR)-induction of long term depression in the CA1 region of the hippocampus of mice. Here we show that beginning at 2 months of age, when mice first acquire the ability to discriminate between closely related contexts, RAS-GRF1 begins to contribute to the induction of long term potentiation (LTP) in the CA1 hippocampus by mediating the action of calcium-permeable, AMPA-type glutamate receptors (CP-AMPARs). Surprisingly, LTP induction by CP-AMPARs through RAS-GRF1 occurs via activation of p38 MAP kinase rather than ERK MAP kinase, which has more frequently been linked to LTP. Moreover, contextual discrimination is blocked by knockdown of Ras-Grf1 expression specifically in the CA1 hippocampus, infusion of a p38 MAP kinase inhibitor into the CA1 hippocampus, or the injection of an inhibitor of CP-AMPARs. These findings implicate the CA1 hippocampus in the developmentally dependent capacity to distinguish closely related contexts through the appearance of a novel LTP-supporting signaling pathway.

Long-term adaptive changes in primate vestibuloocular reflex. III. Electrophysiological observations in flocculus of normal monkeys.

The present study is devoted to a detailed analysis of the structural and synaptic organization of mormyrid Purkinje cells in order to evaluate the possible functional significance of their dendritic palisade pattern. For this purpose, the properties of Golgi-impregnated as well as unimpregnated Purkinje cells in lobe C1 and C3 of the cerebellum of Gnathonemus petersii were light and electron microscopically analyzed, quantified, reconstructed, and mutually compared. Special attention was paid to the degree of regularity of their dendritic trees, their relations with Bergmann glia, and the distribution and numerical properties of their synaptic connections with parallel fibers, stellate cells, "climbing" fibers, and Purkinje axonal boutons. The highest degree of palisade specialization was encountered in lobe C1, where Purkinje cells have on average 50 palisade dendrites with a very regular distribution in a sagittal plane. Their spine density decreases from superficial to deep (from 14 to 6 per micron dendritic length), a gradient correlated with a decreasing parallel fiber density but an increasing parallel fiber diameter. Each Purkinje cell makes on average 75,000 synaptic contacts with parallel fibers, some of which are rather coarse (0.45 microns), and provided with numerous short collaterals. Climbing fibers do not climb, since their synaptic contacts are restricted to the ganglionic layer (i.e., the layer of Purkinje and eurydendroid projection cells), where they make about 130 synaptic contacts per cell with 2 or 3 clusters of thorns on the proximal dendrites. These clusters contain also a type of "shunting" elements that make desmosome-like junctions with both the climbing fiber boutons and the necks of the thorns. The axons of Purkinje cells in lobe C1 make small terminal arborizations, with about 20 boutons, that may be substantially (up to 500 microns) displaced rostrally or caudally with respect to the soma. Purkinje axonal boutons were observed to make synaptic contacts with eurydendroid projection cells and with the proximal dendritic and somatic receptive surface of Purkinje cells, where about 15 randomly distributed boutons per neuron occur. The organization of Purkinje cells in lobe C3 differs markedly from that in C1 and seems to be less regular and specialized, although the overall palisade pattern is even more regular than in lobe C1 because of the absence of large eurydendroid neurons. However, individual neurons have a less regular dendritic tree, there is no apical-basal gradient in spine density or parallel fiber density and diameter, and there are no "shunting" elements in the climbing fiber glomeruli.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Ataxia, episodic dyskinesia and thalamocortical seizures are associated with an inherited loss of P/Q-type voltage-gated Ca2+ channel function. P/Q-type channels are widely expressed throughout the neuraxis, obscuring identification of the critical networks underlying these complex neurological disorders. We recently showed that the conditional postnatal loss of P/Q-type channels in cerebellar Purkinje cells (PCs) in mice (purky) leads to these aberrant phenotypes, suggesting that intrinsic alteration in PC output is a sufficient pathogenic factor for disease initiation. The question arises whether P/Q-type channel deletion confined to a single upstream cerebellar synapse might induce the pathophysiological abnormality of genomically inherited P/Q-type channel disorders. PCs integrate two excitatory inputs, climbing fibers from inferior olive and parallel fibers (PFs) from granule cells (GCs) that receive mossy fiber (MF) input derived from precerebellar nuclei. In this paper, we introduce a new mouse model with a selective knock-out of P/Q-type channels in rhombic lip derived neurons including PF- and MF-pathways (quirky). We found that in quirky mice, PF-PC synaptic transmission is reduced during low-frequency stimulation. Using focal light stimulation of GCs that express optogenetic light-sensitive channels, channelrhodopsin-2, we found that modulation of PC firing via GC input is reduced in quirky mice. Phenotypic analysis revealed that quirky mice display ataxia, dyskinesia and absence epilepsy. These results suggest that developmental alteration of patterned input confined to only one of the main afferent cerebellar excitatory synaptic pathways has a significant role in generating the neurological phenotype associated with the global genomic loss of P/Q-type channel function.

Cerebellar Purkinje cells (PCs) play a principal role in motor coordination and motor learning. To fulfill these functions, PCs receive and integrate two types of excitatory inputs, climbing fiber (CF) and parallel fiber (PF). CFs are projection axons from the inferior olive, and convey error signals to PCs. On the other hand, PFs are T-shaped axons of cerebellar granule cells, and convey sensory and motor information carried through the pontocerebellar and spinocerebellar mossy fiber pathways. The most remarkable feature of PC circuits is the highly territorial innervation by these two excitatory afferents. A single climbing CF powerfully and exclusively innervates proximal PC dendrites, whereas hundreds of thousands of PFs innervate distal PC dendrites. Recent studies using gene-manipulated mice have been elucidating that the PC circuitry is formed and maintained by molecular mechanisms that fuel homosynaptic competition among CFs and heterosynaptic competition between CFs and PFs. GluRdelta2 (a PC-specific glutamate receptor) and precerebellin or Cbln1 (a granule cell-derived secretory protein) cooperatively work for selective strengthening of PF-PC synapses, and prevent excessive distal extension of CFs that eventually causes multiple innervation at distal dendrites. In contrast, P/Q-type Ca2+ channels, which mediate Ca2+ influx upon CF activity, selectively strengthen the innervation by a single main CF, and expel PFs and other CFs from proximal dendrites that it innervates. Therefore, we now understand that owing to these mechanisms, territorial innervation by CFs and PFs is properly structured and mono-innervation by CFs is established. Several key issues for future study are also discussed.

To study the role of the thyroid hormone (TH) in cerebellar development, we generated transgenic mice expressing a dominant-negative TH receptor (TR) in cerebellar Purkinje cells. A mutant human TRβ1 (G345R), which binds to the TH-response element but cannot bind to T3, was subcloned into exon 4 of the full-length L7/Pcp-2 gene, which is specifically expressed in Purkinje and retinal rod bipolar cells. The transgene was specifically expressed in Purkinje cells in the postnatal cerebellum. Purkinje cell dendrite arborization was significantly delayed in the transgenic mice. Surprisingly, granule cell migration was also significantly delayed. In the primary cerebellar culture, TH-induced Purkinje cell dendrite arborization was also suppressed. In quantitative real-time RT-PCR analysis, the expression levels of several TH-responsive genes were altered. The expression levels of inositol trisphosphate receptor type 1 and retinoic acid receptor-related orphan receptorα mRNAs, which are mainly expressed in Purkinje cells, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor mRNA, which is expressed in both Purkinje and granule cells, were significantly decreased. The expression levels of neurotrophin-3 and hairless mRNAs, which are mainly expressed in granule cells, and myelin basic protein mRNA, which is mainly expressed in oligodendrocytes, were also decreased. The motor coordination of transgenic mice was significantly disrupted. These results indicate that TH action through its binding to TR in Purkinje cells is required for the normal cerebellar development. TH action through TR in Purkinje cells is also important for the development of other subsets of cerebellar cells such as granule cells and oligodendrocytes.

1. In the cerebellar cortex, brief, 8 Hz activation of parallel fibres (PFs) induces a cyclic adenosine 3'5'-monophosphate (cAMP) and protein kinase A (PKA)-dependent form of long-term potentiation between PFs and Purkinje cells. 2. With 10 mM BAPTA in the recording pipette, potentiation evoked by raised frequency stimulation (RFS) to one of two, synaptically independent PF inputs to the same Purkinje cell did not remain input specific but consistently spread to synapses that did not receive RFS, up to the maximum distance tested of 168 microm. 3. LTP at activated and non-activated sites was accompanied by a decrease in paired pulse facilitation (PPF). The PKA inhibitor H-89 blocked both of these effects. Inhibition of nitric oxide synthase (NOS), either by 7-nitro-indazole (7-NI) or N (G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME), completely prevented heterosynaptic potentiation and associated reduction in PPF. LTP at distant synapses was selectively prevented by the nitric oxide scavenger 2-(4-carboxyphenyl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide (cPTIO). Inhibition of soluble guanylate cyclase or protein kinase G had no effect on either pathway. 4. Synaptic potentiation at PF-PC synapses, induced by the adenylate cyclase activator forskolin, was also prevented by inhibition of NOS. Forskolin-induced increases in mEPSC frequency were similarly prevented by NOS inhibition and mimicked by the NO donor spermine NONOate. 5. These results are consistent with the notion that heterosynaptic potentiation is of pre-synaptic origin and dependent upon activation of cAMP/PKA and NO. Moreover, they suggest that cAMP/PKA activation stimulates NO production and this diffusible messenger facilitates pre-synaptic transmitter release at synapses within a radius of upwards of 150 microm, through a mechanism that does not involve cGMP.

Mutations in the synaptic gene SHANK3 lead to a neurodevelopmental disorder known as Phelan-McDermid syndrome (PMS). PMS is a relatively common monogenic and highly penetrant cause of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual disability (ID), and frequently presents with attention deficits. The underlying neurobiology of PMS is not fully known and pharmacological treatments for core symptoms do not exist. Here, we report the production and characterization of a Shank3-deficient rat model of PMS, with a genetic alteration similar to a human SHANK3 mutation. We show that Shank3-deficient rats exhibit impaired long-term social recognition memory and attention, and reduced synaptic plasticity in the hippocampal-medial prefrontal cortex pathway. These deficits were attenuated with oxytocin treatment. The effect of oxytocin on reversing non-social attention deficits is a particularly novel finding, and the results implicate an oxytocinergic contribution in this genetically defined subtype of ASD and ID, suggesting an individualized therapeutic approach for PMS.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.18904.001

Cerebellar Purkinje cells are excited by two afferent pathways: climbing and mossy fibers. Climbing fibers evoke large "complex spikes" (CSs) that discharge at low frequencies. Mossy fibers synapse on granule cells whose parallel fibers excite Purkinje cells and may contribute to the genesis of "simple spikes" (SSs). Both afferent systems convey vestibular information to folia 9c-10. After making a unilateral labyrinthectomy (UL) in mice, we tested how the discharge of CSs and SSs was changed by the loss of primary vestibular afferent mossy fibers during sinusoidal roll tilt. We recorded from cells identified by juxtacellular neurobiotin labeling. The UL preferentially reduced vestibular modulation of CSs and SSs in folia 8-10 contralateral to the UL. The effects of a UL on Purkinje cell discharge were similar in folia 9c-10, to which vestibular primary afferents project, and in folia 8-9a, to which they do not project, suggesting that vestibular primary afferent mossy fibers were not responsible for the UL-induced alteration of SS discharge. UL also induced reduced vestibular modulation of stellate cell discharge contralateral to the UL. We attribute the decreased modulation to reduced vestibular modulation of climbing fibers. In summary, climbing fibers modulate CSs directly and SSs indirectly through activation of stellate cells. Whereas vestibular primary afferent mossy fibers cannot account for the modulated discharge of SSs or stellate cells, the nonspecific excitation of Purkinje cells by parallel fibers may set an operating point about which the discharges of SSs are sculpted by climbing fibers.

Understanding the relationship between synaptic plasticity and neuronal output is essential if we are to understand how plasticity is encoded in neural circuits. In the cerebellar cortex, motor learning is thought to be implemented by long-term depression (LTD) of excitatory parallel fiber (PF) to Purkinje cell synapses triggered by climbing fiber (CF) input. However, theories of motor learning generally neglect the contribution of plasticity of inhibitory inputs to Purkinje cells. Here we describe how CF-induced plasticity of both excitatory and inhibitory inputs is reflected in Purkinje cell spike output. We show that coactivation of the CF with PF input and interneuron input leads not only to LTD of PF synapses but also to comparable, "balanced" LTD of evoked inhibitory inputs. These two forms of plasticity have opposite effects on the spike output of Purkinje cells, with the number and timing of spikes sensitively reflecting the degree of plasticity. We used dynamic clamp to evaluate plasticity-induced changes in spike responses to sequences of excitation and feedforward inhibition of varied relative and absolute amplitude. Balanced LTD of both excitatory and inhibitory components decreased the net spike output of Purkinje cells only for inputs with small inhibitory components, whereas for inputs with a larger proportion of feedforward inhibition CF-triggered LTD resulted in an increase in the net spike output. Thus, the net effect of CF-triggered plasticity on Purkinje cell output depends on the balance of excitation and feedforward inhibition and can paradoxically increase cerebellar output, contrary to current theories of cerebellar motor learning.