Abstract
Gamma-frequency oscillations depend on phasic synaptic GABAA receptor (GABAAR)-mediated inhibition to synchronize spike timing. The spillover of synaptically released GABA can also activate extrasynaptic GABAARs, and such tonic inhibition may also contribute to modulating network dynamics. In many neuronal cell types, tonic inhibition is mediated by δ subunit–containing GABAARs. We found that the frequency of in vitro cholinergically induced gamma oscillations in the mouse hippocampal CA3 region was increased by the activation of NMDA receptors (NMDARs) on interneurons. The NMDAR-dependent increase of gamma oscillation frequency was counteracted by the tonic inhibition of the interneurons mediated by δ subunit–containing GABAARs. Recordings of synaptic currents during gamma activity revealed that NMDAR-mediated increases in oscillation frequency correlated with a progressive synchronization of phasic excitation and inhibition in the network. Thus, the balance between tonic excitation and tonic inhibition of interneurons may modulate gamma frequency by shaping interneuronal synchronization.
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27 December 2009
In the version of this article initially published, the first name of the corresponding author was misspelled. The correct name is "Istvan Mody." This has been corrected in all versions of the article.
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Acknowledgements
This research was funded by a Epilepsy Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship to E.O.M. and US National Institutes of Health grants NS30549 and NS02808 and the Coelho Endowment to I.M.
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E.O.M. conducted the experiments and analysis. I.M. supervised the project. E.O.M. and I.M. wrote the manuscript.
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Mann, E., Mody, I. Control of hippocampal gamma oscillation frequency by tonic inhibition and excitation of interneurons. Nat Neurosci 13, 205–212 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.2464
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.2464
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