NMDARs contribute to the facial stimuli-evoked mossy fiber-granule cell synaptic transmission in vivo in mice

• Published in: Neuroscience letters 2020-09, Vol.736, p.135285-135285, Article 135285
• Main Authors: Zhang, Xin-Yuan, Zhang, Guang-Jian, Li, Bing-Xue, Bing, Yan-Hua, Cui, Bai-Ri, Cui, Li-Na, Chu, Chun-Ping, Qiu, De-Lai
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Cerebellar Cortex - drug effects; Cerebellar Cortex - physiology; Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists - pharmacology; In vivo electrophysiological recording; Mice; Mice, Inbred ICR; Mossy fiber-granule cell synaptic transmission; N-methyl-d-aspartate receptors (NMDARs); N-Methylaspartate - pharmacology; Neurons - drug effects; Neurons - physiology; Neuropharmacology; Physical Stimulation; Quinoxalines - pharmacology; Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate - antagonists & inhibitors; Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate - physiology; Sensory stimulation; Synaptic Transmission - drug effects; Synaptic Transmission - physiology; Valine - analogs & derivatives; Valine - pharmacology; Vibrissae - physiology
• ISSN: 0304-3940; 1872-7972
• DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2020.135285

•Blocking NMDARs attenuates the facial stimuli-evoked MF-GC synaptic transmission.•GluN2A but not GluN2B contributes to the stimuli-evoked MF-GC synaptic transmission.•NMDA enhances the stimuli-evoked MF-GC synaptic transmission through GluN2A. N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) are expressed in granule cell and involve in mossy fiber-granule cell (MF-GC) synaptic transmission in cerebellar cortex. In the absence GABAA receptor activity, we here studied the role of NMDARs during the facial stimulation evoked MF-GC synaptic transmission in urethane-anesthetized mice using electrophysiological recording technique and pharmacological methods. Our results showed that facial stimuli train (20 Hz, 5 pulses) evoked 5 field potential responses (N1-N5) in mouse cerebellar granular layer, which identified MF-GC synaptic transmission. Blocking NMDARs induced significant depression in the amplitude of N2 to N5, accompanied with significant decrease in pulse ratios, area under the curve (AUC) and half-width of N1. A selective GluN2A antagonist, PEAQX (10 μM) also produced significant depression in the amplitude of N2 to N5, and decreases in pulse ratios. However, a selective GluN2B antagonist, TCN-237 (10 μM) did not significantly attenuate the facial stimuli train-induced mossy fiber-granule cell synaptic transmission. Application of NMDA (1 μM) produced increases in the AUC and half-width of Ron, as well the amplitude and AUC of Roff, which was reversed by following application of PEAQX. Our present results indicated that NMDARs, especially GluN2A contribute to the facial stimulation-evoked MF-GC synaptic transmission, suggesting that the NMDARs play an important role during the lateral sensory information synaptic transmission in the cerebellar granular layer in vivo in mice.