Abstract
Local GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid) circuits contribute to sensory experience–dependent refinement of neuronal connections in the developing nervous system, but whether GABAergic synapses themselves can be rapidly modified by sensory stimuli is largely unknown. Here we report that repetitive light stimuli or theta burst stimulation (TBS) of the optic nerve in the developing Xenopus retinotectal system induces long-term potentiation (LTP) of glutamatergic inputs but long-term depression (LTD) of GABAergic inputs to the same tectal neuron. The LTD is due to a reduction in presynaptic GABA release and requires activation of presynaptic NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptors (NMDARs) and coincident high-level GABAergic activity. Thus, the presynaptic NMDAR may function as a coincidence detector for adjacent glutamatergic and GABAergic activities, leading to coordinated synaptic modification by sensory experience.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by a grant from the US National Institutes of Health (EY014949) and a Wellcome Trust Fellowship (to M.V.C).
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Supplementary information
Supplementary Fig. 1
Simulated NMDAR-mediated currents associated with bursting spikes and subthreshold responses. (PDF 1014 kb)
Supplementary Fig. 2
Synaptic delay, decay time, and rise time of EPSCs and IPSCs. (PDF 27 kb)
Supplementary Fig. 3
Coincident NMDAR activation and presynaptic activity are required for GABAergic LTD. (PDF 23 kb)
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Lien, CC., Mu, Y., Vargas-Caballero, M. et al. Visual stimuli–induced LTD of GABAergic synapses mediated by presynaptic NMDA receptors. Nat Neurosci 9, 372–380 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn1649
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nn1649
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