Short and long-term effects of postsynaptic calcium fluctuations in dendritic processing, in identified lamprey spinal neurons

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Project objective

Research objectives and content Fast electrical communication between neurons in the CNS occurs primarily through synapses located on dendrites. Calcium ion concentration in the dendrites is known to depend strongly on synaptic activity, but little is as yet understood about its functional significance in dendritic processing. Dendrites have a fundamental role in integrating information converging often from thousands of synapses; calcium is a well established modulatory agent of cellular properties through action of KCa channels, different protein kinases, etc. It seems therefore of utmost importance to establish how Ca2+ entry via NMDA receptors at synapses, and voltage-gated channels throughout dendrites, influences signaling from other synapses to the soma and synaptic plasticity, particularly during physiological repetitive neuronal firing. The lamprey spinal cord, a model system for studying the physiology of locomotor pattern generation, will enable us to interpret dendritic calcium fluctuations in the context of locomotor network function. Specifically, connected pairs of identified pre- and postsynaptic neurons will be studied by applying various intracellular stimulation paradigms and simultaneously visualizing dendritic Ca2+ changes with specific fluorophors, under fast-scanning confocal and DIC microscopy. Training content (objective, benefit and expected impact) Learning electrophysiological research techniques, including: intracellular recordings, patch clamp, video-rate confocal and DIC microscopy, calcium imaging. Attending courses on specific neuroscience topics. Links with industry / industrial relevance (22)

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Participants

• Aristotle University of Thessaloniki · ThessalonikiCoordinatorGreece

Links

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