NMDA receptor‐gated visual responses in hippocampal CA1 neurons

摘要

Key points class="unordered" style="list-style-type:disc" id="tjp12898-list-0001">Sensory information processing in hippocampal circuits is critical for numerous hippocampus‐dependent functions, but the underlying synaptic mechanism remains elusive.We performed whole‐cell recording in vivo to examine visually evoked synaptic activity in hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells (PCs).We first found that at resting potentials, ∼30% of CA1 PCs showed synaptic responses to a flash of visual stimulation.Interestingly, at depolarizing potentials, nearly all CA1 PCs were found to exhibit NMDA receptor‐dependent responses, indicating the presence of NMDA receptor‐mediated gating of CA1 responses.The NMDA receptor‐gated CA1 responses may play important roles in the hippocampal function that depends on sensory information processing.