Maturation of GABAergic inhibition promotes strengthening of temporally coherent inputs among convergent pathways

Kuhlman, S. J., Lu, J., Lazarus, M. S., Huang, Z. J. (June 2010) Maturation of GABAergic inhibition promotes strengthening of temporally coherent inputs among convergent pathways. PLoS Computational Biology, 6 (6). e1000797. ISSN 1553734X

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URL: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20532211
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000797

Abstract

Spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP), a form of Hebbian plasticity, is inherently stabilizing. Whether and how GABAergic inhibition influences STDP is not well understood. Using a model neuron driven by converging inputs modifiable by STDP, we determined that a sufficient level of inhibition was critical to ensure that temporal coherence (correlation among presynaptic spike times) of synaptic inputs, rather than initial strength or number of inputs within a pathway, controlled postsynaptic spike timing. Inhibition exerted this effect by preferentially reducing synaptic efficacy, the ability of inputs to evoke postsynaptic action potentials, of the less coherent inputs. In visual cortical slices, inhibition potently reduced synaptic efficacy at ages during but not before the critical period of ocular dominance (OD) plasticity. Whole-cell recordings revealed that the amplitude of unitary IPSCs from parvalbumin positive (Pv+) interneurons to pyramidal neurons increased during the critical period, while the synaptic decay time-constant decreased. In addition, intrinsic properties of Pv+ interneurons matured, resulting in an increase in instantaneous firing rate. Our results suggest that maturation of inhibition in visual cortex ensures that the temporally coherent inputs (e.g. those from the open eye during monocular deprivation) control postsynaptic spike times of binocular neurons, a prerequisite for Hebbian mechanisms to induce OD plasticity.

Item Type: Paper
Subjects: organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell types > neurons
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell types > neurons
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > cell types and functions > cell types > neurons
CSHL Authors:
Communities: CSHL labs > Huang lab
CSHL Post Doctoral Fellows
Depositing User: CSHL Librarian
Date: 3 June 2010
Date Deposited: 04 Oct 2011 13:26
Last Modified: 02 May 2013 20:32
PMCID: PMC2880567
Related URLs:
URI: https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/15459

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