Journal of neurophysiology
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The perforant path constitutes the primary projection system relaying information from the neocortex to the hippocampal formation. Long-term synaptic potentiation (LTP) in the perforant path projections to the dentate gyrus is well characterized. However, surprisingly few studies have addressed the mechanisms underlying LTP induction in the direct perforant path projections to the hippocampus. ⋯ The selective sensitivity of lateral perforant path-CA3 LTP to mu-opioid receptor antagonists corresponds with the distribution of mu-opioid receptors within the stratum lacunosum-moleculare of area CA3 where perforant path projections to CA3 terminate. These data indicate that both lateral and medial perforant path projections to the CA3 region display LTP, and that LTP induction in medial and lateral perforant path-CA3 synapses are differentially sensitive to NMDA receptor and mu-opioid receptor antagonists. This suggests a role for opioid, but not NMDA receptors in the induction of LTP at lateral perforant path projections to the hippocampal formation.
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Primary hyperalgesia after tissue injury is suggested to result from sensitization of primary afferent fibers, but sensitization to mechanical stimuli has been difficult to demonstrate. In the companion study, sensitization of mechano-responsive Adelta- and C-fibers did not explain pain behaviors 45 min after an incision in the rat hindpaw. In the present study, we examined mechanical response properties of Adelta- and C-fibers innervating the glabrous skin of the plantar hindpaw in rats 1 day after an incision or sham procedure. ⋯ The results indicate that sensitization of Adelta- and C-fibers is apparent 1 day after incision. Because sensitization of afferent fibers to mechanical stimuli correlated with behavioral results, sensitization may contribute to the reduced withdrawal threshold after incision. Spontaneous activity in Adelta- and C-fibers may account for nonevoked pain behavior and may also contribute to mechanical hyperalgesia by amplifying responses centrally.
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Glutamate is the major excitatory amino acid neurotransmitter in the CNS, including the neocortex, hippocampus, and spinal cord. Normal synaptic transmission is mainly mediated by glutamate AMPA and/or kainate receptors. Glutamate N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are normally inactive and only activated when a sufficient postsynaptic depolarization is induced by the activity. ⋯ Furthermore the thresholds for generating action potential responses were decreased, and, in many cases, co-application of forskolin and 5-HT led to the generation of action potentials by previously subthreshold stimulation of primary afferent fibers in the presence of the NMDA receptor blocker 2-amino-5-phosphonovaleric acid. Our results suggest that pure NMDA synapses exist on sensory neurons in adult spinal cord and that they may contribute to functional sensory transmission. The synergistic recruitment of functional AMPA responses by 5-HT and forskolin provides a new cellular mechanism for glutamatergic synapses in mammalian spinal cord.
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C-type dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons express three types of Na+ currents: fast TTX-sensitive, slow TTX-resistant, and persistent TTX-resistant Na+ currents. The nitric oxide (NO) donors papa-NONOate and S-nitroso-N-acetyl-DL-penicillamine inhibit all three types of Na+ currents. The NO scavenger hemoglobin abolished the effects of papa-NONOate on Na+ currents, indicating that NO or NO-related species inhibit these Na+ currents. ⋯ The absence of NO-mediated enhancement of slow inactivation in fast and slow Na+ channels indicates that NO does not inhibit fast and slow Na+ channels by facilitating the transition to a slow inactivated state. These results demonstrate that inhibition of Na+ currents is not due to the modulation of fast and slow sodium channel inactivation. Taken together, these results show that NO or NO-related products modify the sulfhydryl groups on Na+ channels and inhibit Na+ currents by blocking the channel conductance.
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Pain has a strong emotional dimension, and the amygdala plays a key role in emotionality. The processing of nociceptive mechanical and thermal information was studied in individual neurons of the central nucleus of the amygdala, the target of the spino-parabrachio-amygdaloid pain pathway and a major output nucleus of the amygdala. This study is the first to characterize nociceptive amygdala neurons with input from deep tissue, particularly the knee joint. ⋯ Fifteen neurons had no receptive field in the knee but responded to noxious stimulation of other body areas; 27 nonresponsive neurons were not activated by natural somesthetic stimulation. Our data suggest that excitation is the predominant effect of brief painful stimulation of somatic tissue on the population of central amygdala neurons with knee joint input. Their large symmetrical receptive fields and sigmoid rather than monotonically increasing linear stimulus-response functions suggest a role of nociceptive central amygdala neurons in other than sensory-discriminative aspects of pain.