Faculty Bibliography

The integrity of the septohippocampal system is essential for memory formation and spatial behavior as well as for the electrical stability of the hippocampus. For many years it has been tacitly assumed or explicitly stated that the reciprocal septohippocampal loop is closed by a massive lateral septum-medial septum path. In the present study we reexamined the intraseptal connectivity with Phaseolus vulgaris leucoagglutinin tracing combined with choline acetyltransferase and parvalbumin immunohistochemistry at both the light and electron microscopic levels. We found that the previously hypothesized lateral septum to medial septum projection is extremely sparse and that the major medial septum to lateral septum path is parvalbumin-immunoreactive (likely GABAergic). The redefined circuitry has important implications for the understanding of the septal regulation of hippocampal electrical activity and the operations of the septo-hippocampal system

Pyramidal cells in the CA1 hippocampal region displayed transient network oscillations (200 hertz) during behavioral immobility, consummatory behaviors, and slow-wave sleep. Simultaneous, multisite recordings revealed temporal and spatial coherence of neuronal activity during population oscillations. Participating pyramidal cells discharged at a rate lower than the frequency of the population oscillation, and their action potentials were phase locked to the negative phase of the simultaneously recorded oscillatory field potentials. In contrast, interneurons discharged at population frequency during the field oscillations. Thus, synchronous output of cooperating CA1 pyramidal cells may serve to induce synaptic enhancement in target structures of the hippocampus

Following lesions of the fimbria-fornix, there is a time-dependent increase in interictal spikes and seizure susceptibility. This may result from sprouting of local excitatory and inhibitory circuits in response to the loss of subcortical and commissural innervation of the hippocampal formation. We used receptor autoradiography to examine the density of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-sensitive L-[3H]glutamate and [3H]-kainate (KA) binding sites in the hippocampal formation at 5 days, 3 months, and 1 year following bilateral aspiration lesions of the fimbria-fornix. At 5 days post-lesion, the CA3 and CA1 strata radiatum and oriens displayed a decrease (20-42%, P less than 0.01) in NMDA-sensitive L-[3H]glutamate binding. The initial decrease was followed by a moderate recovery at later time points but was still evident at 1 year postlesion. This may reflect a lesion-induced turnover of synaptic complexes, down-regulation of postsynaptic receptors, or loss of presynaptic receptors. Five days following fimbria-fornix lesion there was also a decrease (13-15%, P less than 0.05) in [3H]KA binding in CA3 strata radiatum and pyramidale. However, at 3 months postlesion KA receptor density was elevated by 29-33% (P less than 0.01) in the outer molecular layer of the dentate gyrus with no significant change in binding to the inner molecular layer. By 1 year postlesion, the density of [3H]KA binding sites was not significantly different from that observed in control animals of the same age. The increase in KA receptor density in the outer molecular layer 3 months after fimbria-fornix lesion may reflect sprouting of the perforant path input or mossy fibers to this region and contribute to the increase in interictal spikes and seizures susceptibility

The present experiments examined whether cholinergic grafts reverse the physiological and behavioral deficits of the damaged hippocampus. Fimbria-fornix lesions were performed in young rats and 3 months later half of the lesioned rats received cholinergic-rich basal forebrain transplants. Eight months after grafting we tested the animals behaviorally in the water maze. Following the behavioral experiments, the animals were implanted with chronic recording and stimulating electrodes and the electrical properties of the hippocampus, including spontaneous EEG, interictal spikes, evoked responses, long-term potentiation, and sensitivity to induced seizures were examined. Grafted rats did not show statistically reliable behavioral recovery (swim latencies, swim path lengths) and their performance was identical to the lesion-only group. Acetylcholinesterase reinnervation of the host hippocampus in grafted animals was similar to intact rats; the grafts also contained numerous parvalbumin-immunoreactive neurons. The most striking physiological change was the significant elevation of seizure threshold in the grafted group, but other physiological parameters did not improve consistently. The findings suggest that the presence of septal tissue grafts and restoration of cholinergic reinnervation in animals with previous subcortical denervation of the hippocampus are not sufficient to restore normal hippocampal electrical patterns or to improve behavioral performance

In this chapter we review the physiological properties of granule cells in vivo and in vitro. We conclude from the literature that in intact rats granule cells fire rhythmic bursts of action potentials concurrent with exploration-associated theta waves. The population discharge of granule cells coincides with the maximum probability of firing of CA3 pyramidal cells on the positive phase of focally recorded theta waves. During consummatory behaviors, immobility and anesthesia the firing rate of granule cells substantially decreases. We propose that the conjoint activity of the discharging CA3 cells and tetanization of these same cells by mossy fibers during exploratory (theta) behavior will temporarily increase synaptic efficacy among the active CA3 neurons even after the termination of exploration. As a result, the very same CA3 cells that carried information during exploration now become the burst-initiator cells of the sharp-wave associated population bursts during consummatory behaviors and sleep. The creation of new burst-initiator neurons is hypothesized to be essential for memory trace formation. From this perspective the main physiological function of granule cells is to 'tetanize' CA3 pyramidal neurons during exploratory behaviors and induce a meaningful reorganization of the functional connectivity of the CA3 network

During the course of an in vivo intracellular labeling study, a chandelier (axo-axonic) cell was completely filled with biocytin in the CA1 region of the hippocampus. Chandelier cells are known to provide GABAergic terminals exclusively to the axon initial segment of pyramidal cells. The lateral extent and laminar distribution of the dendritic arborization of the chandelier cell was very similar to that of pyramidal cells; the numerous basal and apical dendrites reached the ventricular surface and the hippocampal fissure, respectively. The dendrites, however, had very few spines. The neuron had an asymmetric axonal arbor occupying an elliptical area of 600 by 850 microns in the pyramidal cell layer and stratum oriens, with over three-quarters of the axon projecting to the fimbrial side of the neuron. Counting all clusters of terminals, representing individually innervated axon initial segments, the chandelier cell was estimated to contact 1214 pyramidal cells, a number that exceeds previous estimations, based on Golgi studies, by several-fold. The findings support the view that chandelier cells may control the threshold and/or synchronize large populations of principal cells

1. We used simulations of the in vitro CA3 region of the hippocampus to analyse the 5 Hz population oscillations recorded experimentally in carbachol. 2. A simulation model of the in vitro CA3 region was constructed with 1000 pyramidal neurones and 200 inhibitory neurones (100 producing fast inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs) and 100 producing slow IPSPs of delayed onset). Each neurone contained nineteen soma-dendritic compartments. Pyramidal neurones contained six voltage- and/or calcium-dependent ionic currents, whose kinetics were consistent with voltage-clamp data. The connectivity and waveform of unitary synaptic events for excitatory and fast inhibitory synapses were consistent with dual intracellular recordings. This network was shown to generate previously described network oscillations, including synchronized bursts recorded in the presence of GABAA blockers, and synchronized synaptic potentials observed during partial blockade of GABAA inhibition. 3. The model generated 5 Hz oscillations as recorded in carbachol under the following conditions: (a) excitatory synaptic conductance was within a limited range; (b) there was blockade of fast and slow IPSPs (consistent with the experimental lack of effect of bicuculline and phaclofen on carbachol oscillations and the known depression of IPSPs by acetylcholine); (c) the after hyperpolarization (AHP) conductance was reduced (consistent with the known pharmacology of carbachol); (d) the apical dendrites of the pyramidal cells were depolarized, as suggested by the carbachol-induced depolarization of pyramidal neurones. Each oscillation was associated in pyramidal cells with a burst of action potentials riding on a depolarizing wave. The N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) type of excitatory synapse was not necessary for the oscillations to occur. 4. Progressive reduction of excitatory synaptic strength led to an oscillation of the same frequency, with bursts riding on smaller EPSPs (consistent with the experiment). Further reduction of excitatory synaptic strength abolished the population oscillation by uncoupling the neurones. When excitatory synaptic conductance was too large, population oscillations were attenuated as the cells switched from a bursting mode to a repetitively firing mode. 5. Increasing the AHP conductance prolonged the interburst interval as expected. Inclusion of slow IPSPs exerted a similar effect. 6. When fast IPSPs were included, an oscillation with different characteristics emerged: a 10 Hz oscillation that was gated by compound GABAA IPSPs. On any oscillatory wave, few pyramidal neurones fired, and the firing of individual neurones was irregular.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)