大鼠离体下丘脑制备成功

神经生理学的在体实验通过逆向激动法鉴定下丘脑的神经内分泌神经元,由于此法记录的稳定性很差。因此,一般只限于记录细胞外电位。最近,通过离体实验的方法已经记录到稳定的细胞内电位;但在制备下丘脑组织成薄片时,往往改变或破坏了鉴定神经内分泌神经元的通路,使电生理鉴定无法进行。Bourque等最近成功地制备出完整的大鼠离体下丘脑。由于它保留着供鉴定用的传出纤维,因此,适用于对神经垂体和结节漏斗部神经内分泌神经元进行细胞外和细胞内电生理与神经药理学研究。将大鼠断头后,立即取出大脑和完整的垂体,然后分离出下丘脑,通过颈动脉血管进行离体灌注。在这样制备的下丘脑标本上,可以持续观察逆向激发电位和周期性突触电位达15小时以上。Bourque等首先     

延髓面神经后核内侧区呼吸相关神经元的放电形式

实验用家兔和ＳＤ大鼠,氨基甲酸乙酯麻醉。记录膈神经或膈肌放电作为呼吸的指标。在延髓面神经后核内侧区细胞外记录呼吸相关神经元放电,在家兔所记录到的２４９个ＲＲＮｓ中,吸气神经元１１８个,呼气神经元９１个,呼吸跨时相神经元４０个。在大鼠所记录到的１５３个ＲＲＮｓ中,吸气神经元６８个,呼气神经元５５个,呼吸跨时相神经元３０个,在ｍＮＲＦ分布有较多的呼气－呼气跨时相神经元,这类神经元放电总是先天膈神经吸气     

科研新闻

大鼠离体下丘脑制备成功神经生理学的在体实验通过逆向激动法鉴定下丘脑的神经内分泌神经元,由于此法记录的稳定性很差。因此,一般只限于记录细胞外电位。最近,通过离体实验的方法已经记录到稳定的细胞内电位;但在制备下丘脑组织或薄片时,往往改变或破坏了鉴定神经内分泌神经元的通路,使电生理鉴定无法进行。Bourq(?)等最近成功地制备出完整的大鼠离体下丘脑。由于它保留着供鉴定用的传出纤维,因此,适用于对神经垂体和结节漏斗部神经内分泌神经元进行细胞外和细胞内电生理与神经药理学研究。     

胞内记录猫体感皮层内脏伤害性感受神经元的电生理特性

为了从细胞水平探讨皮层内脏伤害感受的特性及机制,本文应用细胞内电位记录技术,观察了猫体感皮层内脏大神经皮层代表区的８５１个神经元对电刺激内脏大神经的诱发反应及电生理特性。其中４１２个单位为内脏伤害性感受神经元,其自发放电有多种形式,根据诱发反应现象分为特异性和非特异性伤害感受神经元,内脏伤害性诱发反应分为兴奋性反应（５１７％）、抑制性反应（３１３１％）及混合性反应（１７％）三类。在形式上具有潜伏期长、反应形式复杂等特点。实验发现８５个神经元为内脏及肋间神经的会聚反应细胞。部分神经元用神经生物素进行细胞内电泳标记以显示功能细胞所在层次及形态。结果说明皮层体感神经元具有内脏伤害性感受的作用,并从细胞及突触后电反应特点上探讨了内脏痛的感受机制。     

Neuritin诱导大鼠骨髓基质细胞分化为神经元样细胞的电生理研究

目的:探讨神经营养因子Neuritin诱导大鼠骨髓基质细胞分化为神经元样细胞的电生理特性.方法:应用膜片钳技术,采用全细胞记录方式,对由Neuritin诱导的大鼠骨髓基质细胞进行诱导前后的电生理功能测定.结果:分化后的神经元样细胞较诱导前细胞的膜特性[静息膜电位(RMP)膜电容(Cm)串联电阻值(RS)]有了显著改变(p＜0.01).分化后细胞记录到K+电流,包括两种成分:外向延迟整流K+电流和内向整流K+电流.结论:骨髓基质细胞经过Neuritin诱导能够向功能性神经元方向分化.     

体内跟踪单个冲经细胞及其突触分布

近日,科学家开发了一项能够在成体水平小鼠脑区的复杂神经网络系统中特异性标记单个神经元细胞及其神经突触分布形式的技术。该项技术利用转基因方法在小鼠不同脑区的神经元细胞可控地表达不同的荧光蛋白和突触囊泡蛋白,应用不同分子标记对神经元细胞及其突触进行特异性标记,能够在单个神经元细胞水平上提供详尽的三维神经突触分布信息,     

白介素-6对NMDA诱导的小脑神经元放电活动的抑制作用及其机制

目的：观察白介素-6（IL-6）对N-甲基-D-天冬氨酸（NMDA）激发的神经元放电活动的影响及其可能的作用机制。方法：用含IL-6、NMDA和JAK抑制剂ACA90的人工脑脊液（ACSF）灌流小脑脑片,利用离体脑片神经元单位放电细胞外记录技术,记录药物对小脑间位核神经元放电的影响。用Western blot法测定间位核神经元NMDA受体亚单位1（NRI）的磷酸化水平。结果：单独用12．5μmol／L和25μmol／LNMDA灌流,神经元放电频率均较基础放电频率增加;用不同浓度IL-6（50,100,200μg／ml）联合NMDA作用后,神经尤的放电频率出现浓度依赖性地降低;AG490可部分阻断IL-6对NMDA兴奋神经元放电的抑制作用。与单独NMDA处理组比较,用IL-6联合NMDA处理神经元后,神经元的NR1磷酸化水平出现浓度依赖性地降低。AG490可阻断IL-6所致的神经元NR1磷酸化水平的降低。结论：IL-6可抑制NMDA激发的小脑间位核神经元的放电兴奋活动;并同时下调神经元的NR1磷酸化水平。     

本期重点推介

正研究棉铃虫Helicoverpa armigera嗅觉感受的神经机制,可为进一步研发棉铃虫引诱剂技术提供理论依据。单感器记录与神经元示踪技术相结合是研究昆虫嗅觉受体神经元的功能及其投射的神经纤维球的重要方法。为了鉴定棉铃虫雄性成虫触角性信息素感器嗅觉受体神经元的功能、形态及中枢投射路径,河南农业大学植物保护学院马百伟和赵新成及中国农业科学院植物保护研究所王桂荣等以雄性棉铃虫成虫为试虫,利用单感器记录技术记录其嗅觉受体神经元     

神经干细胞分化过程中微管蛋白表达变化的光电镜观察

目的对神经干细胞向神经元定向分化过程中微管蛋白的表达变化进行光、电镜观察研究。方法采用细胞培养技术、免疫荧光技术以及免疫电镜技术对神经干细胞向神经元定向分化过程中微管蛋白的表达变化进行观察。结果在神经干细胞向神经元定向分化的不同时期,存在微管蛋白的表达变化,在分化初期以核周附近分布明显,随神经元的成熟散在分布于胞质中及突起内,形成细网状,构成细胞骨架,维持细胞形态。结论在神经干细胞向神经元定向分化过程中伴随有微管蛋白的表达变化,随神经元的成熟而构成细胞骨架,维持细胞形态。     

星形胶质细胞的生物学功能

人类大脑由两类细胞组成:一类是神经元,另一类是神经胶质细胞。神经胶质细胞的数量约为神经元的10倍,但其作用长期以来一直被认为仅限于在神经元之间充当填充物,填满大脑中的剩余空间,同时为神经元提供营养。但近年来认识到神经胶质细胞的主要成员星形胶质细胞能够感知外界刺激,它的反应选择性甚至高于相邻神经元。神经元的反应活动很多都要经过星形胶质细胞的介导才能完成。本文介绍了星形胶质细胞在神经调制、突触调节和神经血管系统偶联方面的一些新进展,以期在不久的将来对星形胶质细胞的功能有更深入的了解,并能应用于临床实践。     

Local interneurons and information processing in the olfactory glomeruli of the moth Manduca sexta

Intracellular recordings were made from the major neurites of local interneurons in the moth antennal lobe. Antennal nerve stimulation evoked 3 patterns of postsynaptic activity: (i) a short-latency compound excitatory postsynaptic potential that, based on electrical stimulation of the antennal nerve and stimulation of the antenna with odors, represents a monosynaptic input from olfactory afferent axons (71 out of 86 neurons), (ii) a delayed activation of firing in response to both electrical- and odor-driven input (11 neurons), and (iii) a delayed membrane hyperpolarization in response to antennal nerve input (4 neurons).Simultaneous intracellular recordings from a local interneuron with short-latency responses and a projection (output) neuron revealed unidirectional synaptic interactions between these two cell types. In 20% of the 30 pairs studied, spontaneous and current-induced spiking activity in a local interneuron correlated with hyperpolarization and suppression of firing in a projection neuron. No evidence for recurrent or feedback inhibition of projection neurons was found. Furthermore, suppression of firing in an inhibitory local interneuron led to an increase in firing in the normally quiescent projection neuron, suggesting that a disinhibitory pathway may mediate excitation in projection neurons. This is the first direct evidence of an inhibitory role for local interneurons in olfactory information processing in insects. Through different types of multisynaptic interactions with projection neurons, local interneurons help to generate and shape the output from olfactory glomeruli in the antennal lobe.Abbreviations AL antennal lobe - EPSP excitatory postsynaptic potential - GABA -aminobutyric acid - IPSP inhibitory postsynaptic potential - LN local interneuron - MGC macroglomerular complex - OB olfactory bulb - PN projection neuron - TES N-tris[hydroxymethyl]methyl-2-aminoethane-sulfonic acid     

A cross-interval spike train analysis: the correlation between spike generation and temporal integration of doublets

A stochastic spike train analysis technique is introduced to reveal the correlation between the firing of the next spike and the temporal integration period of two consecutive spikes (i.e., a doublet). Statistics of spike firing times between neurons are established to obtain the conditional probability of spike firing in relation to the integration period. The existence of a temporal integration period is deduced from the time interval between two consecutive spikes fired in a reference neuron as a precondition to the generation of the next spike in a compared neuron. This analysis can show whether the coupled spike firing in the compared neuron is correlated with the last or the second-to-last spike in the reference neuron. Analysis of simulated and experimentally recorded biological spike trains shows that the effects of excitatory and inhibitory temporal integration are extracted by this method without relying on any subthreshold potential recordings. The analysis also shows that, with temporal integration, a neuron driven by random firing patterns can produce fairly regular firing patterns under appropriate conditions. This regularity in firing can be enhanced by temporal integration of spikes in a chain of polysynaptically connected neurons. The bandpass filtering of spike firings by temporal integration is discussed. The results also reveal that signal transmission delays may be attributed not just to conduction and synaptic delays, but also to the delay time needed for temporal integration. Received: 3 March 1997 / Accepted in revised form: 6 November 1997     

Spike correlations in a songbird agree with a simple markov population model

The relationships between neural activity at the single-cell and the population levels are of central importance for understanding neural codes. In many sensory systems, collective behaviors in large cell groups can be described by pairwise spike correlations. Here, we test whether in a highly specialized premotor system of songbirds, pairwise spike correlations themselves can be seen as a simple corollary of an underlying random process. We test hypotheses on connectivity and network dynamics in the motor pathway of zebra finches using a high-level population model that is independent of detailed single-neuron properties. We assume that neural population activity evolves along a finite set of states during singing, and that during sleep population activity randomly switches back and forth between song states and a single resting state. Individual spike trains are generated by associating with each of the population states a particular firing mode, such as bursting or tonic firing. With an overall modification of one or two simple control parameters, the Markov model is able to reproduce observed firing statistics and spike correlations in different neuron types and behavioral states. Our results suggest that song- and sleep-related firing patterns are identical on short time scales and result from random sampling of a unique underlying theme. The efficiency of our population model may apply also to other neural systems in which population hypotheses can be tested on recordings from small neuron groups.     

Responses of descending neurons to looming stimuli in the praying mantis <Emphasis Type="Italic">Tenodera aridifolia</Emphasis>

Responses to visual stimuli of some neurons that descend the nerve cord from the brain were recorded extracellularly in the mantis Tenodera aridifolia. Most of the recorded neurons showed their largest responses to looming stimuli that simulated a black circle approaching towards the mantis. The neurons showed a transient excitatory response to a gradually darkening or receding circle. The neurons showed sustained excitation to the linearly expanding stimuli, but the spike frequency decreased rapidly. The responses of the neurons were affected by both the diameter and the speed of looming stimuli. Faster or smaller looming stimuli elicited a higher peak frequency. These responses were observed in both recordings from the connective between suboesophageal and prothoracic ganglia and the connective between prothoracic and mesothoracic ganglia. There was a one-to-one correspondence of spike firing between these two recordings with a fixed delay. The neurons had the receptive field on ipsilateral side to its axon at the cervical connective. These results suggest that there is a looming-sensitive descending neuron, with an axon projecting over prothoracic ganglion, in the mantis nervous system.     

Modulation of a feeding neural circuit by microinjection of K+ channel expression genes into a single identified neuron in Aplysia kurodai

In Aplysia buccal ganglion expression genes for voltage-dependent K(+) channels (AKv1.1a) were injected into one of four electrically coupled multi-action (MA) neurons that directly inhibit jaw-closing (JC) motor neurons and may cooperatively generate their firing pattern during the feeding response. Following the DNA injection, the firing threshold increased and the spike frequency at the same current decreased in the current-induced excitation of the MA neuron; indicating a decrease in excitability of the MA neuron. This procedure also reduced the firing activity of MA neurons during the feeding-like rhythmic responses induced by the electrical nerve stimulation. Moreover, the firing pattern in JC motor neurons was remarkably changed, suggesting the effective contribution of a single MA neuron or electrically coupled MA neurons to the generation of the firing pattern in the JC motor neurons. This method appears useful for exploring the functional roles of specific neurons in complex neural circuits.     

Relating ion channel expression, bifurcation structure, and diverse firing patterns in a model of an identified motor neuron

Neurons show diverse firing patterns. Even neurons belonging to a single chemical or morphological class, or the same identified neuron, can display different types of electrical activity. For example, motor neuron MN5, which innervates a flight muscle of adult Drosophila, can show distinct firing patterns under the same recording conditions. We developed a two-dimensional biophysical model and show that a core complement of just two voltage-gated channels is sufficient to generate firing pattern diversity. We propose Shab and DmNa _v to be two candidate genes that could encode these core currents, and find that changes in Shab channel expression in the model can reproduce activity resembling the main firing patterns observed in MN5 recordings. We use bifurcation analysis to describe the different transitions between rest and spiking states that result from variations in Shab channel expression, exposing a connection between ion channel expression, bifurcation structure, and firing patterns in models of membrane potential dynamics.     

昆虫神经生物学研究技术:细胞内记录

细胞内记录是昆虫神经生物学研究中的常用技术。它用来获得神经元兴奋和抑制过程及神经脉冲产生机制的信息。该技术的特点是把一根微电极的顶尖插入到神经细胞内进行电生理记录 ,这根电极还能用于向膜内输入电流。作者以对蝗虫Schistocercagregaria后胸神经节内的 2个运动神经元的活性记录为例介绍了这一技术     

The mechanism of intrinsic amplification of hyperpolarizations and spontaneous bursting in striatal cholinergic interneurons

Striatal cholinergic interneurons pause their ongoing firing in response to sensory stimuli that have acquired meaning as a signal for learned behavior. In slices, these cells exhibit both spontaneous activity patterns and spontaneous pauses very similar to those seen in vivo. The mechanisms responsible for ongoing firing and spontaneous pauses were studied in striatal slices using perforated patch recordings. All hyperpolarizations, whether spontaneous or generated by current injection, were amplified and shaped by two hyperpolarization-activated currents. Hyperpolarization onsets were regeneratively amplified by a potassium current (KIR) whose activation promoted further hyperpolarization. The termination of hyperpolarizations was controlled by a time-dependent nonspecific cation current (HCN). The duration and even the sizes of spontaneous and driven hyperpolarizations and pauses in spontaneous activity in cholinergic interneurons are largely autonomous properties of the neuron, rather than reflections of characteristics of the input eliciting the response.     

Rhythm-induced spike-timing patterns characterized by 1D firing maps

We explore patterns in the spike timing of neurons receiving periodic inputs, with an emphasis on stable characteristics which are realized in both models and in-vitro whole-cell recordings. We report on whole-cell recordings of pyramidal CA1 cells from rat hippocampus and entorhinal cortex and compare this data to model simulations. Cells were injected with a constant current to induce a steady firing rate and then a modest rhythm was added which altered the spike times and their corresponding phases relative to the rhythm. For both experiment and theory the relationship between consecutive spike phases is characterized by a probability distribution with peaks concentrated near a one-dimensional firing map. As is well-known, stable fixed points of this map correspond to the neuron phase-locking to the rhythm. We show that the interaction between noise and sufficiently steep maps can also cause a new kind of spike-time organization, in which consecutive spike time pairs organize into discrete clusters, with transitions between these clusters proceeding in a fixed sequence. This structure is not just a vestige of the noise-free dynamics. This slow dynamics and temporal organization in the relationship between consecutive spike phases is not evident in either the neuron’s voltage traces or single phase or interspike interval histograms. Furthermore, the consecutive spike relationship is also evident in consecutive ISIs, and hence this ordering can be observed without detailed knowledge of the rhythm (e.g. without concurrent LFP recordings).     

Mechanisms of firing patterns in fast-spiking cortical interneurons

Cortical fast-spiking (FS) interneurons display highly variable electrophysiological properties. Their spike responses to step currents occur almost immediately following the step onset or after a substantial delay, during which subthreshold oscillations are frequently observed. Their firing patterns include high-frequency tonic firing and rhythmic or irregular bursting (stuttering). What is the origin of this variability? In the present paper, we hypothesize that it emerges naturally if one assumes a continuous distribution of properties in a small set of active channels. To test this hypothesis, we construct a minimal, single-compartment conductance-based model of FS cells that includes transient Na(+), delayed-rectifier K(+), and slowly inactivating d-type K(+) conductances. The model is analyzed using nonlinear dynamical system theory. For small Na(+) window current, the neuron exhibits high-frequency tonic firing. At current threshold, the spike response is almost instantaneous for small d-current conductance, gd, and it is delayed for larger gd. As gd further increases, the neuron stutters. Noise substantially reduces the delay duration and induces subthreshold oscillations. In contrast, when the Na(+) window current is large, the neuron always fires tonically. Near threshold, the firing rates are low, and the delay to firing is only weakly sensitive to noise; subthreshold oscillations are not observed. We propose that the variability in the response of cortical FS neurons is a consequence of heterogeneities in their gd and in the strength of their Na(+) window current. We predict the existence of two types of firing patterns in FS neurons, differing in the sensitivity of the delay duration to noise, in the minimal firing rate of the tonic discharge, and in the existence of subthreshold oscillations. We report experimental results from intracellular recordings supporting this prediction.