Retzius Neurons Research Articles

Magnesium Effects on Nonsynaptic Epileptiform Activity in Leech Retzius Neurons.

The effects of Mg2+ on Ni(2+)-induced epileptiform bursting activity and input membrane resistance during this activity of leech Retzius neurons were examined using intracellular recordings. To induce epileptiform activity, 3 mmol/l NiCl2 was added into superfusing Ringer (Ri) saline. To test for dose-dependence of the effects of Mg2+ on the induced epileptiform activity, MgCl2 was added in concentrations from 1 mmol/l to 20 mmol/l Mg2+ to the Ni(2+)-containing Ri saline. Input membrane resistance (IMR) was measured in standard Ri, Ni2+ Ri and 20 mmol/l Mg2+Ni2+ Ri saline. Superfusion with Ni2+ Ri induced epileptiform bursting activity characterized by generation of paroxysmal depolarization shifts (PDSs). Parameters of epileptiform activity including PDS frequency, PDS duration, PDS amplitude and the number of spikes/PDS were measured. Magnesium suppressed Ni(2+)-induced epileptiform activity, significantly reducing values of all parameters observed in a concentration-dependent manner. The highest concentration applied of 20 mmol/l Mg2+ completely eliminated epileptiform activity. To test for the effect of Mg2+ on membrane conductance during bursting, IMR was measured. Magnesium significantly increased IMR during bursting suppression.

Serotonin release from the neuronal cell body and its long-lasting effects on the nervous system

Serotonin, a modulator of multiple functions in the nervous system, is released predominantly extrasynaptically from neuronal cell bodies, axons and dendrites. This paper describes how serotonin is released from cell bodies of Retzius neurons in the central nervous system (CNS) of the leech, and how it affects neighbouring glia and neurons. The large Retzius neurons contain serotonin packed in electrodense vesicles. Electrical stimulation with 10 impulses at 1 Hz fails to evoke exocytosis from the cell body, but the same number of impulses at 20 Hz promotes exocytosis via a multistep process. Calcium entry into the neuron triggers calcium-induced calcium release, which activates the transport of vesicle clusters to the plasma membrane. Exocytosis occurs there for several minutes. Serotonin that has been released activates autoreceptors that induce an inositol trisphosphate-dependent calcium increase, which produces further exocytosis. This positive feedback loop subsides when the last vesicles in the cluster fuse and calcium returns to basal levels. Serotonin released from the cell body is taken up by glia and released elsewhere in the CNS. Synchronous bursts of neuronal electrical activity appear minutes later and continue for hours. In this way, a brief train of impulses is translated into a long-term modulation in the nervous system.

Reelin receptors ApoER2 and VLDLR are expressed in distinct spatiotemporal patterns in developing mouse cerebral cortex.

In mammalian developing brain, neuronal migration is regulated by a variety of signaling cascades, including Reelin signaling. Reelin is a glycoprotein that is mainly secreted by Cajal-Retzius neurons in the marginal zone, playing essential roles in the formation of the layered neocortex via its receptors, apolipoprotein E receptor 2 (ApoER2) and very low density lipoprotein receptor (VLDLR). However, the precise mechanisms by which Reelin signaling controls the neuronal migration process remain unclear. To gain insight into how Reelin signaling controls individual migrating neurons, we generated monoclonal antibodies against ApoER2 and VLDLR and examined the localization of Reelin receptors in the developing mouse cerebral cortex. Immunohistochemical analyses revealed that VLDLR is localized to the distal portion of leading processes in the marginal zone (MZ), whereas ApoER2 is mainly localized to neuronal processes and the cell membranes of multipolar cells in the multipolar cell accumulation zone (MAZ). These different expression patterns may contribute to the distinct actions of Reelin on migrating neurons during both the early and late migratory stages in the developing cerebral cortex.

The self-regulation of neurotransmitter release.

Retzius cells are large neurons in the ganglia of the leech (Lent, 1977), releasing 5-HT (Leake, 1986) and orchestrating the animal behavior (Carretta, 1988). The leech nervous system is relatively simple and its exploration allows correlating, in a quantitative manner, the chemical and electrical activity, at cellular level, with the animal behavior (Mazzoni et al., 2007). The recent work of Francisco De-Miguel, Citlali Trueta and colleagues has given important contributions on the understanding of 5-HT secretion at Retzius cells that occurs both at the site of synaptic targets and from the soma (De-Miguel and Trueta, 2005). The somatic 5-HT release is dependent on L-type calcium channel activation (Trueta et al., 2003) and on calcium-induced calcium release (Trueta et al., 2004). Retzius cells have 5-HT autoreceptors and the activation of these proteins is coupled to chloride channels producing synaptic autoinhibition (Cercos et al., 2009). In the article by Leon-Pinzon et al. (2014) recently published in Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience, a significant progress on the understanding of the mechanisms induced by 5-HT autoreceptors is presented. Specifically, the authors report the very interesting finding that sustained 5-HT vesicular release is regulated by a positive feedback at the same Retzius cell. The soma of Retzius neurons releases serotonin from dense clusters of core vesicles without evidence of active zones. This type of secretion is similar to secretion by excitable endocrine cells. When 5-HT release is associated with high-frequency action potential firing, the initial 5-HT release mediated by calcium entry via voltage-gated calcium channels activates 5-HT autoreceptors. This activation leads to one or two additional episodes of intracellular calcium increase which amplify the release of 5-HT. In order to perform this study, the authors used an elegant experimental analysis combining electrophysiological recordings, fluorescence imaging of calcium and neurotransmitter activity and pharmacological tests. The physiological amplification mechanism reported in this paper allows Retzius cells operating in a two-state mode: a “weakly releasing” mode and a “strongly releasing” mode. Presumably, there will be a critical frequency that may vary from cell to cell switching from one mode to the other. This bi-stable behavior, which might be similar to what reported in another invertebrate neuron (Achenbach et al., 1997), plays an obviously important role in the computational properties of both Retzius cells and associated neuronal networks. But did we learn something that can be possibly extended to the mammalian nervous system? The leech nervous system represents a rich model for vertebrate systems from the points of view of both cellular neurobiology (Schmold and Syed, 2012) and of higher functions (Sahley, 1995). In serotonergic neurons in the raphe nuclei of the rodent brain, 5-HT is also released from the soma (Sarkar et al., 2012) and from the dendrites (Colgan et al., 2012). These phenomena have several common features with 5-HT somatic release at Retzius neurons. Thus, Leon-Pinzon et al. (2014) formulate the hypothesis that the mechanisms of self-regulation of 5-HT discovered in Retzius neurons may also operate in the mammalian nervous system, perhaps by activating receptors not only at the soma and at different time-scale.

Exocytosis of serotonin from the neuronal soma is sustained by a serotonin and calcium-dependent feedback loop.

The soma of many neurons releases large amounts of transmitter molecules through an exocytosis process that continues for hundreds of seconds after the end of the triggering stimulus. Transmitters released in this way modulate the activity of neurons, glia and blood vessels over vast volumes of the nervous system. Here we studied how somatic exocytosis is maintained for such long periods in the absence of electrical stimulation and transmembrane Ca2+ entry. Somatic exocytosis of serotonin from dense core vesicles could be triggered by a train of 10 action potentials at 20 Hz in Retzius neurons of the leech. However, the same number of action potentials produced at 1 Hz failed to evoke any exocytosis. The 20-Hz train evoked exocytosis through a sequence of intracellular Ca2+ transients, with each transient having a different origin, timing and intracellular distribution. Upon electrical stimulation, transmembrane Ca2+ entry through L-type channels activated Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release. A resulting fast Ca2+ transient evoked an early exocytosis of serotonin from sparse vesicles resting close to the plasma membrane. This Ca2+ transient also triggered the transport of distant clusters of vesicles toward the plasma membrane. Upon exocytosis, the released serotonin activated autoreceptors coupled to phospholipase C, which in turn produced an intracellular Ca2+ increase in the submembrane shell. This localized Ca2+ increase evoked new exocytosis as the vesicles in the clusters arrived gradually at the plasma membrane. In this way, the extracellular serotonin elevated the intracellular Ca2+ and this Ca2+ evoked more exocytosis. The resulting positive feedback loop maintained exocytosis for the following hundreds of seconds until the last vesicles in the clusters fused. Since somatic exocytosis displays similar kinetics in neurons releasing different types of transmitters, the data presented here contributes to understand the cellular basis of paracrine neurotransmission.

La liberación de calcio de los depósitos intracelulares promueve la secreción de serotonina en terminales sinápticas

En este trabajo se estudio la participación que tiene la liberación de calcio del retículo endoplásmico en la liberación de serotonina en terminales sinápticas. Los experimentos se llevaron a cabo en sinapsis formadas en cultivo entre neuronas serotonergicas de Retzius y neuronas mecanosensoriales sensibles a presión, aisladas del Sistema Nervioso Central de la sanguijuela. En esta preparación la estimulación con pares de impulsos produjo facilitación sináptica. La estabilización de los receptores de rianodina en un estado de sub-conductancia por la incubación con rianodina 100 µM produjo un alargamiento del potencial sináptico en respuesta a impulsos presinápticos, sugiriendo que el calcio liberado por estos canales puede alcanzar las vesículas y promover la secreción. En contraste, el vaciamiento de los depósitos intracelulares de calcio con tapsigargina 500 nM produjo una disminución gradual de la facilitación sináptica ante impulsos presinápticos pareados y abolió la liberación extrasináptica en el axón neuronal en respuesta a trenes de impulsos. Todo esto ocurrió sin cambios en las propiedades de la membrana postsináptica, lo cual sugiere que la liberación de calcio intracelular participa en un mecanismo de retroalimentación positiva que promueve la liberación presináptica y perisináptica en las neuronas serotonérgicas.

Contractile and Electrical Activity of Neurons on Exposure to Colchicine

The aim of the present work was to study the contractile activity of traumatized nerve cell processes and to attempt to inhibit their retraction using a solution of colchicine. Experiments were performed on living isolated neurons from freshwater mollusks (Lymnaea stagnalis and Planorbis corneus vulgaris), which were studied in phase contrast conditions using time-lapse microvideo recordings. Contractile activity of nerve cell processes was seen in 92% of cases in control conditions in Ringer’s solution. Colchicine inhibited nerve process contraction in 86% of neurons. Experiments addressing neuron electrical activity were performed on leech Retzius neurons. Incubation of ganglia in colchicine solution was found to increase the frequency of spontaneous spike activity from 0.22 to 0.75 spikes/sec. The amplitude of spontaneous potentials decreased from 46.9 to 37 mV, the threshold decreased by 18%, the duration of spontaneous spikes increased from 4.3 to 7.1 msec, and the latent period of responses to stimuli increased from 25.0 to 37.9 msec. In conditions of stimulation at 7–10 Hz, neurons generated spike activity at higher frequencies than in control conditions. Thus, our experiments showed that colchicine can inhibit the contractile activity of traumatized nerve cell processes, keeping the electrically excitable membrane in a satisfactory condition. It follows that attempts can be made in vivo to produce partial inhibition of nerve fiber contraction, thus preventing increases in neuron diastasis, which prevent surgical approximation to the point of contact and promote the development of massive scars at transection sites.

Toxicity Induced by Cumene Hydroperoxide in Leech Retzius Nerve Cells: the Protective Role of Glutathione

In the present study, we studied the ability of glutathione (GSH) to detoxify exogenously applied cumene hydroperoxide (CHP). Exposure of leech Retzius nerve cells to CHP (1.5 mM) induced a marked prolongation of the spontaneous spike potential of these cells. Early after depolarization, and a cardiac-like action potential with a rapid depolarization followed by a sustained depolarization or plateau, which is terminated by a rapid repolarization were recorded. GSH (0.2 mM) significantly inhibited the effects of CHP on the duration of the action potential and suppressed CHP-induced spontaneous repetitive activity. Voltage-clamp recordings showed that CHP (1.5 mM) caused significant changes in the outward potassium currents. The fast and slow steady part of the potassium outward current was reduced by 46% and 39%, respectively. GSH applied in a concentration of 0.2 mM partially blocked the effect of CHP on the calcium-activated potassium currents. The fast and slow calcium-activated potassium currents were suppressed by about 20% and 15%, respectively. These results suggest that the neurotoxic effect of CHP on spontaneous spike electrogenesis and calcium-activated potassium currents of leech Retzius nerve cells was reduced in the presence of GSH.

A Comparison of the Effects of Cumene Hydroperoxide and Hydrogen Peroxide on Retzius Nerve Cells of the Leech <i>Haemopis sanguisuga</i>

Oxidative stress and the production of reactive oxygen species are known to play a major role in neuronal cell damage, but the exact mechanisms responsible for neuronal injury and death remain uncertain. In the present study, we examined the effects of oxidative stress on spontaneous spike activity and depolarizing outward potassium current by exposing the Retzius neurons of the leech to cumene hydroperoxide (CHP) and hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)), the oxidants commonly used to examine oxidative mechanisms mediating cell death. We observed that relatively low concentrations of CHP (0.25, 1, and 1.5 mM) led to a marked prolongation of spontaneous repetitive activity. The prolonged action potentials showed an initial, spike-like depolarization followed by a plateau phase. In contrast, H(2)O(2) at the same and much higher concentrations (0.25 to 5 mM) did not significantly change the duration of spontaneous spike potentials of leech Retzius nerve cells (LRNCs). In the voltage clamp experiments, calcium-activated outward potassium currents, needed for the repolarization of the action potential, were suppressed with CHP, but not with H(2)O(2). The present findings indicate that CHP is a more potent oxidant and neurotoxin than H(2)O(2) and that the effect of CHP on the electrophysiological properties of LRNCs may be due to the inhibition of the potassium channels.

Biophysics of Active Vesicle Transport, an Intermediate Step That Couples Excitation and Exocytosis of Serotonin in the Neuronal Soma

Transmitter exocytosis from the neuronal soma is evoked by brief trains of high frequency electrical activity and continues for several minutes. Here we studied how active vesicle transport towards the plasma membrane contributes to this slow phenomenon in serotonergic leech Retzius neurons, by combining electron microscopy, the kinetics of exocytosis obtained from FM1-43 dye fluorescence as vesicles fuse with the plasma membrane, and a diffusion equation incorporating the forces of local confinement and molecular motors. Electron micrographs of neurons at rest or after stimulation with 1 Hz trains showed cytoplasmic clusters of dense core vesicles at 1.5±0.2 and 3.7±0.3 µm distances from the plasma membrane, to which they were bound through microtubule bundles. By contrast, after 20 Hz stimulation vesicle clusters were apposed to the plasma membrane, suggesting that transport was induced by electrical stimulation. Consistently, 20 Hz stimulation of cultured neurons induced spotted FM1-43 fluorescence increases with one or two slow sigmoidal kinetics, suggesting exocytosis from an equal number of vesicle clusters. These fluorescence increases were prevented by colchicine, which suggested microtubule-dependent vesicle transport. Model fitting to the fluorescence kinetics predicted that 52–951 vesicles/cluster were transported along 0.60–6.18 µm distances at average 11–95 nms−1 velocities. The ATP cost per vesicle fused (0.4–72.0), calculated from the ratio of the ΔGprocess/ΔGATP, depended on the ratio of the traveling velocity and the number of vesicles in the cluster. Interestingly, the distance-dependence of the ATP cost per vesicle was bistable, with low energy values at 1.4 and 3.3 µm, similar to the average resting distances of the vesicle clusters, and a high energy barrier at 1.6–2.0 µm. Our study confirms that active vesicle transport is an intermediate step for somatic serotonin exocytosis by Retzius neurons and provides a quantitative method for analyzing similar phenomena in other cell types.

Segmental and regional differences in neuronal expression of the leech Hox genes Lox1 and Lox2 during embryogenesis.

Using double immunofluorescence experiments, we described the expression of the leech Hox genes, Lox1 and Lox2 by central neurons that stained for either serotonin or the leech-specific neuronal marker, Laz1-1. The goal is to determine whether the segmental boundaries of Lox1 and Lox2 expression in identified neurons coincide with segmental and regional differences in the differentiation of these cells. A number of neurons described here have been previously identified. The anteromedial serotonergic neurons are restricted to rostral ganglion 1 (R1) to midbody ganglion 3 (M3), but only express Lox1 in M2 and M3. The posteromedial serotonergic neurons which are situated in all segments as bilateral pairs early in development, but later become unpaired starting at M3, expressed Lox1 only in M2 and M3, and Lox2 in M8 to M21, in all paired and unpaired stages. The Retzius neurons, which stain for serotonin, express Lox2 in M7 to M21 where they exhibit different morphologies from their segmental homologs of the sex ganglia in M5 and M6. The Laz1-1 immunoreactive (Laz1-1+) heart accessory-like neurons express Lox1 in M4 and Lox2 in M7 to M17, but not in their segmental homologs of the heart accessory (HA) neurons located exclusively in M5 and M6. Also, Laz1-1+ neurons, which we named Lz3 expressed Lox1 in M4 to M8 where they are unpaired, but express Lox2 in M9 to M16 where they are bilaterally paired. Other Laz1-1 cells show more restricted and isolated Lox1 and Lox2 expression patterns. These results suggest a role of Lox1 and/or Lox2 in defining the anteroposterior boundaries of segmentally iterated neurons.

Cycling of Dense Core Vesicles Involved in Somatic Exocytosis of Serotonin by Leech Neurons

We studied the cycling of dense core vesicles producing somatic exocytosis of serotonin. Our experiments were made using electron microscopy and vesicle staining with fluorescent dye FM1-43 in Retzius neurons of the leech, which secrete serotonin from clusters of dense core vesicles in a frequency-dependent manner. Electron micrographs of neurons at rest or after 1 Hz stimulation showed two pools of dense core vesicles. A perinuclear pool near Golgi apparatuses, from which vesicles apparently form, and a peripheral pool with vesicle clusters at a distance from the plasma membrane. By contrast, after 20 Hz electrical stimulation 47% of the vesicle clusters were apposed to the plasma membrane, with some omega exocytosis structures. Dense core and small clear vesicles apparently originating from endocytosis were incorporated in multivesicular bodies. In another series of experiments, neurons were stimulated at 20 Hz while bathed in a solution containing peroxidase. Electron micrographs of these neurons contained gold particles coupled to anti-peroxidase antibodies in dense core vesicles and multivesicular bodies located near the plasma membrane. Cultured neurons depolarized with high potassium in the presence of FM1-43 displayed superficial fluorescent spots, each reflecting a vesicle cluster. A partial bleaching of the spots followed by another depolarization in the presence of FM1-43 produced restaining of some spots, other spots disappeared, some remained without restaining and new spots were formed. Several hours after electrical stimulation the FM1-43 spots accumulated at the center of the somata. This correlated with electron micrographs of multivesicular bodies releasing their contents near Golgi apparatuses. Our results suggest that dense core vesicle cycling related to somatic serotonin release involves two steps: the production of clear vesicles and multivesicular bodies after exocytosis, and the formation of new dense core vesicles in the perinuclear region.

Extrasynaptic Neurotransmission as a Way of Modulating Neuronal Functions

Extrasynaptic Neurotransmission as a Way of Modulating Neuronal Functions

Functional properties and cell type specific distribution ofIh channels in leech neurons

The hyperpolarisation-activated cation current (I(h)) has been described in many vertebrate and invertebrate species and cell types. In neurons, I(h) is involved in rhythmogenesis, membrane potential stabilisation and many other functions. In this work, we investigate the distribution and functional properties of I(h) in identified leech neurons of intact segmental ganglia. We found I(h) in the mechanosensory touch (T), pressure (P) and noxious (N) neurons, as well as in Retzius neurons. The current displayed its largest amplitude in P neurons and we investigated its biophysical and pharmacological properties in these cells. I(h) was half-maximally activated at -65 mV and fully activated at -100 mV. The current mutually depended on both Na(+) and K(+) with a permeability ratio p(Na)/p(K) of ∼0.21. The reversal potential was approximately -35 mV. The time course of activation could be approximated by a single time constant of ∼370 ms at -60 mV, but required two time constants at -80 mV of ∼80 and ∼560 ms. The current was half-maximally blocked by 0.3 mmol l(-1) Cs(+) but was insensitive to the bradycardic agent ZD7288. The physiological function of this channel could be a subtle alteration of the firing behaviour of mechanosensory neurons as well as a stabilisation of the resting membrane potential.

Functional Dicer Is Necessary for Appropriate Specification of Radial Glia during Early Development of Mouse Telencephalon

Early telencephalic development involves transformation of neuroepithelial stem cells into radial glia, which are themselves neuronal progenitors, around the time when the tissue begins to generate postmitotic neurons. To achieve this transformation, radial precursors express a specific combination of proteins. We investigate the hypothesis that micro RNAs regulate the ability of the early telencephalic progenitors to establish radial glia. We ablate functional Dicer, which is required for the generation of mature micro RNAs, by conditionally mutating the Dicer1 gene in the early embryonic telencephalon and analyse the molecular specification of radial glia as well as their progeny, namely postmitotic neurons and basal progenitors. Conditional mutation of Dicer1 from the telencephalon at around embryonic day 8 does not prevent morphological development of radial glia, but their expression of Nestin, Sox9, and ErbB2 is abnormally low. The population of basal progenitors, which are generated by the radial glia, is disorganised and expanded in Dicer1-/- dorsal telencephalon. While the proportion of cells expressing markers of postmitotic neurons is unchanged, their laminar organisation in the telencephalic wall is disrupted suggesting a defect in radial glial guided migration. We found that the laminar disruption could not be accounted for by a reduction of the population of Cajal Retzius neurons. Together, our data suggest novel roles for micro RNAs during early development of progenitor cells in the embryonic telencephalon.

Ectopic Reelin Induces Neuronal Aggregation with a Normal Birthdate-Dependent “Inside-Out” Alignment in the Developing Neocortex

Neurons in the developing mammalian neocortex form the cortical plate (CP) in an "inside-out" manner; that is, earlier-born neurons form the deeper layers, whereas later-born neurons migrate past the existing layers and form the more superficial layers. Reelin, a glycoprotein secreted by Cajal-Retzius neurons in the marginal zone (MZ), is crucial for this "inside-out" layering, because the layers are inverted in the Reelin-deficient mouse, reeler (Reln(rl)). Even though more than a decade has passed since the discovery of reelin, the biological effect of Reelin on individual migrating neurons remains unclear. In addition, although the MZ is missing in the reeler cortex, it is unknown whether Reelin directly regulates the development of the cell-body-sparse MZ. To address these issues, we expressed Reelin ectopically in the developing mouse cortex, and the results showed that Reelin caused the leading processes of migrating neurons to assemble in the Reelin-rich region, which in turn induced their cell bodies to form cellular aggregates around Reelin. Interestingly, the ectopic Reelin-rich region became cell-body-sparse and dendrite-rich, resembling the MZ, and the late-born neurons migrated past their predecessors toward the central Reelin-rich region within the aggregates, resulting in a birthdate-dependent "inside-out" alignment even ectopically. Reelin receptors and intracellular adaptor protein Dab1 were found to be necessary for formation of the aggregates. The above findings indicate that Reelin signaling is capable of inducing the formation of the dendrite-rich, cell-body-sparse MZ and a birthdate-dependent "inside-out" alignment of neurons independently of other factors/structures near the MZ.

Modulation of nickel-induced bursting with 4-aminopyridine in leech retzius nerve cells

Paroxysmal depolarization shift has been identified as a characteristic feature of the cellular basis of epilepsy. On Na+-dependent bursting, 1 mmol/l 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) produced a two-phase effect - a significant depolarization accompanied by an increase in the frequency of bursting, followed by repolarization along with a diminished frequency of bursting. Neither 1 ?mol/l apamin nor 150 nmol/l charybdotoxin (ChTX) elicited any significant effect on either bursting or standard conditions. Our results suggest that 4-AP affects the bursting indirectly by altering the excitability of the cell. The lack of effects of apamin and ChTX is probably due to channel insensitivity to these blockers in leech.

Real-Time Measurements of Synaptic Autoinhibition Produced by Serotonin Release in Cultured Leech Neurons

We studied autoinhibition produced immediately after synaptic serotonin (5-HT) release in identified leech Retzius neurons, cultured singly or forming synapses onto pressure-sensitive neurons. Cultured Retzius neurons are isopotential, thus allowing accurate recordings of synaptic events using intracellular microelectrodes. The effects of autoinhibition on distant neuropilar presynaptic endings were predicted from model simulations. Following action potentials (APs), cultured neurons produced a slow hyperpolarization with a rise time of 85.4 +/- 5.2 ms and a half-decay time of 252 +/- 17.4 ms. These inhibitory postpotentials were reproduced by the iontophoretic application of 5-HT and became depolarizing after inverting the transmembranal chloride gradient by using microelectrodes filled with potassium chloride. The inhibitory postpotentials were reversibly abolished in the absence of extracellular calcium and absent in reserpine-treated neurons, suggesting an autoinhibition due to 5-HT acting on autoreceptors coupled to chloride channels. The autoinhibitory responses increased the membrane conductance and decreased subsequent excitability. Increasing 5-HT release by stimulating with trains of ten pulses at 10 or 30 Hz produced 23 +/- 6 and 47 +/- 2% of AP failures, respectively. These failures were reversibly abolished by the serotonergic antagonist methysergide (140 muM). Moreover, reserpine-treated neurons had only 5 +/- 4% of failures during trains at 10 Hz. This percentage was increased to 35 +/- 4% by iontophoretic application of 5-HT. Increases in AP failures correlated with smaller postsynaptic currents. Model simulations predicted that the autoinhibitory chloride conductance reduces the amplitude of APs arriving at neuropilar presynaptic endings. Altogether, our results suggest that 5-HT autoinhibits its subsequent release by decreasing the excitability of presynaptic endings within the same neuron.

Summation of excitatory postsynaptic potentials in electrically-coupled neurones

Dendritic electrical coupling increases the number of effective synaptic inputs onto neurones by allowing the direct spread of synaptic potentials from one neurone to another. Here we studied the summation of excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) produced locally and arriving from the coupled neurone (transjunctional) in pairs of electrically-coupled Retzius neurones of the leech. We combined paired recordings of EPSPs, the production of artificial excitatory postsynaptic potentials (APSPs) in neurone pairs with different coupling coefficients and simulations of EPSPs produced in the coupled dendrites. Summation of the EPSPs produced in the dendrites was always linear, suggesting that synchronous EPSPs are produced at two or more different pairs of coupled dendrites and not in both sides of any one gap junction. The different spatio-temporal relationships explored between pairs of EPSPs or APSPs produced three main effects. (1) Synchronous pairs of EPSPs or APSPs exhibited an elongation of their decay phase compared to singe EPSPs. (2) Asymmetries in the amplitudes between the pair of EPSPs added a “hump” to the smallest EPSP. (3) Modelling the inputs near the electrical synapse or anticipating the production of the transjunctional APSP increased the amplitude of the compound EPSP. The magnitude of all these changes depended on the coupling coefficient of the neurones. We also show that the hump improves the passive conduction of EPSPs by adding low frequency components. The diverse effects of summation of local and alien EPSPs shown here endow electrically-coupled neurones with a wider repertoire of adjustable integrative possibilities.

Augmentation and ionic mechanism of effect of β-N-methylamino- l-alanine in presence of bicarbonate on membrane potential of Retzius nerve cells of the leech Haemopis sanguisuga

The role of neurotoxic non-protein amino acid beta-N-methylamino- l-alanine (L-BMAA) as a putative causative agent of Western pacific amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/Parkinsonism dementia complex (ALS/PDC) has recently been reinvigorated. In view of this data we have investigated the strength and mechanism of effect of L-BMAA in presence of 20 mmol/L bicarbonate (a cofactor for BMAA) on membrane potential of the Leech Haemopis sanguisuga. Our results show that L-BMAA has excitatory effect in bicarbonate containing solution, which is more potent than in nominally bicarbonate free solution. This potentiation by bicarbonate is L-BMAA specific, as it was not exhibited by beta-N-oxalylamino- l-alanine. The effect of L-BMAA was partially blocked by non-NMDA receptor antagonist CNQX. Application of L-BMAA caused a decrease in input membrane resistance, an increase of intracellular sodium activity, and a decrease of intracellular potassium activity. Present findings indicate that BMAA could initiate excitotoxicity through activation of non-NMDA ionotropic glutamate receptors.