Search results for "Interneuron"
showing 10 items of 112 documents
Estudi de la plasticitat estructural en malalties psiquiàtriques amb models animals
2021
El concepte científic de l’estrès s’associa a una resposta adaptativa front a un estímul ambiental o una demanda. Tot i això, si les pertorbacions al medi ambient són constants, es produeix un desgast a l’organisme que té efectes perjudicials en aquest. El cervell es pot considerar l’òrgan central de l’estrès, ja que en ell comença la principal resposta biològica. És conegut que esdeveniments estressants de curta duració poden potenciar les funcions neuronals i millorar el rendiment cognitiu. D’altra banda, llargs períodes d’estrès poden alterar més profundament la fisiologia de diverses regions del sistema nerviós i afectar al seu funcionament, produint dèficits cognitius i d’aprenentatge.…
Neuronal structural plasticity in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex: regulation by Dopamine and PSA-NCAM
2011
Although there is a decline in brain plasticity across lifespan, neurons in certain areas of the adult brain retain the ability to undergo synaptic, dendritic and spine remodeling in response to different stimuli. This neuronal structural plasticity seems to be the basis for many cognitive processes and it is crucial for adaptive responses to aversive experiences and recovery from brain damage and disease. Among the numerous candidate molecules that have been identified for mediating this neuronal remodeling, cell adhesion molecules and, specially, the neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM), are of particular interest. The addition of polysialic acid (PSA) to the NCAM is critical for the stru…
Distribution and Function of Gap Junction Coupling in Cortical GABAergic Neurons.
2013
Although gap junctions have been observed in GABAergic interneurons of several brain regions, this chapter focuses on the distribution and functions of gap junctions and connexins in inhibitory interneurons of the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. Evidence for interconnections mediated by electrical synapses is reported for at least eight cerebral cortex interneuron types, classified on the basis of morphology, electrophysiology and molecular markers. The main differences in the organization of these interneuronal networks are summarized in terms of homologous and heterologous electrical coupling and mutual chemical inhibition. The role of connexin36 (Cx36) in forming neuronal electrical syn…
Resonance properties of GABAergic interneurons in immature GAD67-GFP mouse neocortex.
2014
Subthreshold resonance is a characteristic membrane property of different neuronal classes, is critically involved in the generation of network oscillations, and tunes the integration of synaptic inputs to particular frequency ranges. In order to investigate whether neocortical GABAergic interneurons show resonant behavior already during early postnatal development, we performed whole-cell patch-clamp recordings from visually identified interneurons in supragranular layers of parietal regions in coronal neocortical slices from postnatal day (P) P6-P13 GAD67-GFP knock-in mice. Subthreshold resonance was analyzed by injection of sinusoidal current with varying frequency. About 50% of the inve…
Exciting Complexity: The Role of Motor Circuit Elements in ALS Pathophysiology
2020
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal disease, characterized by the degeneration of both upper and lower motor neurons. Despite decades of research, we still to date lack a cure or disease modifying treatment, emphasizing the need for a much-improved insight into disease mechanisms and cell type vulnerability. Altered neuronal excitability is a common phenomenon reported in ALS patients, as well as in animal models of the disease, but the cellular and circuit processes involved, as well as the causal relevance of those observations to molecular alterations and final cell death, remain poorly understood. Here, we review evidence from clinical studies, cell type-specific electrophysi…
Hardwiring the Brain: Endocannabinoids Shape Neuronal Connectivity
2007
The roles of endocannabinoid signaling during central nervous system development are unknown. We report that CB 1 cannabinoid receptors (CB 1 Rs) are enriched in the axonal growth cones of γ-aminobutyric acid–containing (GABAergic) interneurons in the rodent cortex during late gestation. Endocannabinoids trigger CB 1 R internalization and elimination from filopodia and induce chemorepulsion and collapse of axonal growth cones of these GABAergic interneurons by activating RhoA. Similarly, endocannabinoids diminish the galvanotropism of Xenopus laevis spinal neurons. These findings, together with the impaired target selection of cortical GABAergic interneurons lacking CB 1 Rs, identify endoc…
Early histological maturation in the hippocampus of the guinea pig.
2000
The vesicular zinc-rich synaptic systems of the principal neurons of the hippocampus are well developed in newborn guinea pigs, a precocial species. In addition, alvear and fimbrial myelinated fibers as well as significant inhibitory interneurons (i.e. somatostatin, parvalbumin and opioid immunoreactive hippocampal interneurons) are also well developed. On the contrary, neither vesicular zinc synapses nor myelinated fibers nor the above mentioned immunoreactive interneurons are detectable in newborn specimens of other related altricial species such as rats or rabbits. These data suggest that early maturation of a highly integrative center related to cognitive map building such as the hippoc…
NMDA-induced acetylcholine release in mouse striatum: role of NO synthase isoforms
2002
Striatal cholinergic interneurons are stimulated by glutamatergic inputs from thalamus and cortex via NMDA receptors. The present microdialysis study was designed to characterize the role of nitric oxide (NO) in this process and to identify the NO synthase (NOS) isoform responsible for this effect. For this purpose, we studied the effects of NMDA and 3-morpholino sydnonimine (SIN-1) perfusions on the release of acetylcholine (ACh) in mouse striatum. In wild-type C57/Bl6 mice, perfusion of NMDA (100 µm) induced a two-fold stimulation of ACh release. This effect was attenuated in mice lacking endothelial NOS but was completely absent in mice lacking neuronal NOS. Local perfusion of SIN-1 (300…
Impact of pharmacological and environmental manipulations on neuronal structural plasticity and dynamics
2017
El sistema nervioso de vertebrados es uno de los más estudiados, aunque peor comprendidos, del organismo de mamíferos. Desde que Ramón y Cajal postuló su teoría celular de este sistema (Ramón y Cajal 1909), la neurona se ha postulado como su unidad funcional. Sin embargo, durante las últimas décadas se ha revolucionado la visión que se tenía de éste. Una de las percepciones más asentadas era que, tras el desarrollo embrionario, el sistema nervioso se mantenía inmutable. Sin embargo, ahora sabemos que diferentes formas de plasticidad gobiernan su adaptación, que son necesarias para importantes procesos del día a día, tales como el aprendizaje y la memoria (Smythies 2002; Berlucchi and Buchte…
Induction of neuronal plasticity during adulthood. Role of cortical interneurons and plasticity-related molecules.
2019
La complejidad del sistema nervioso de los vertebrados representa un reto a la hora de conocer su funcionamiento. Hace ya más de cien años que se postuló la neurona como unidad básica de procesamiento, generación y transmisión de la información a través de este sistema, y, con el paso de los años, ha evolucionado el conocimiento sobre esta unidad funcional. La idea clásica del sistema nervioso central (SNC) adulto es la de un tejido asombrosamente interconectado y complejo, pero prácticamente inmutable y muy poco adaptable a los cambios. No obstante, esta visión se ha ido desplazando, formándose una nueva idea del SNC adulto que, aunque de manera más limitada que durante el desarrollo, tamb…