In both mammals and insects neuronal information is processed in different higher and lower order brain centers. These centers are coupled via convergent and divergent anatomical connections including feed forward and feedback wiring. Furthermore, information of the same origin is partially sent via parallel pathways to different and sometimes into the same brain areas. To understand the evolutionary benefits as well as the computational advantages of these wiring strategies and especially their temporal dependencies on each other, it is necessary to have simultaneous access to single neurons of different tracts or neuropiles in the same preparation at high temporal resolution. Here we concentrate on honeybees by demonstrating a unique extracellular long term access to record multi unit activity at two subsequent neuropiles1, the antennal lobe (AL), the first olfactory processing stage and the mushroom body (MB), a higher order integration center involved in learning and memory formation, or two parallel neuronal tracts2 connecting the AL with the MB. The latter was chosen as an example and will be described in full. In the supporting video the construction and permanent insertion of flexible multi channel wire electrodes is demonstrated. Pairwise differential amplification of the micro wire electrode channels drastically reduces the noise and verifies that the source of the signal is closely related to the position of the electrode tip. The mechanical flexibility of the used wire electrodes allows stable invasive long term recordings over many hours up to days, which is a clear advantage compared to conventional extra and intracellular in vivo recording techniques.
19 Related JoVE Articles!
Multi-unit Recording Methods to Characterize Neural Activity in the Locust (Schistocerca Americana) Olfactory Circuits
Institutions: Washington University in St. Louis .
Detection and interpretation of olfactory cues are critical for the survival of many organisms. Remarkably, species across phyla have strikingly similar olfactory systems suggesting that the biological approach to chemical sensing has been optimized over evolutionary time1
. In the insect olfactory system, odorants are transduced by olfactory receptor neurons (ORN) in the antenna, which convert chemical stimuli into trains of action potentials. Sensory input from the ORNs is then relayed to the antennal lobe (AL; a structure analogous to the vertebrate olfactory bulb). In the AL, neural representations for odors take the form of spatiotemporal firing patterns distributed across ensembles of principal neurons (PNs; also referred to as projection neurons)2,3
. The AL output is subsequently processed by Kenyon cells (KCs) in the downstream mushroom body (MB), a structure associated with olfactory memory and learning4,5
. Here, we present electrophysiological recording techniques to monitor odor-evoked neural responses in these olfactory circuits.
First, we present a single sensillum recording method to study odor-evoked responses at the level of populations of ORNs6,7
. We discuss the use of saline filled sharpened glass pipettes as electrodes to extracellularly monitor ORN responses. Next, we present a method to extracellularly monitor PN responses using a commercial 16-channel electrode3
. A similar approach using a custom-made 8-channel twisted wire tetrode is demonstrated for Kenyon cell recordings8
. We provide details of our experimental setup and present representative recording traces for each of these techniques.
Neuroscience, Issue 71, Neurobiology, Biomedical Engineering, Bioengineering, Physiology, Anatomy, Cellular Biology, Molecular Biology, Entomology, Olfactory Receptor Neurons, Sensory Receptor Cells, Electrophysiology, Olfactory system, extracellular multi-unit recordings, first-order olfactory receptor neurons, second-order projection neurons, third-order Kenyon cells, neurons, sensilla, antenna, locust, Schistocerca Americana, animal model
Identification of Olfactory Volatiles using Gas Chromatography-Multi-unit Recordings (GCMR) in the Insect Antennal Lobe
Institutions: University of Washington.
All organisms inhabit a world full of sensory stimuli that determine their behavioral and physiological response to their environment. Olfaction is especially important in insects, which use their olfactory systems to respond to, and discriminate amongst, complex odor stimuli. These odors elicit behaviors that mediate processes such as reproduction and habitat selection1-3
. Additionally, chemical sensing by insects mediates behaviors that are highly significant for agriculture and human health, including pollination4-6
, herbivory of food crops7
, and transmission of disease8,9
. Identification of olfactory signals and their role in insect behavior is thus important for understanding both ecological processes and human food resources and well-being.
To date, the identification of volatiles that drive insect behavior has been difficult and often tedious. Current techniques include gas chromatography-coupled electroantennogram recording (GC-EAG), and gas chromatography-coupled single sensillum recordings (GC-SSR)10-12
. These techniques proved to be vital in the identification of bioactive compounds. We have developed a method that uses gas chromatography coupled to multi-channel electrophysiological recordings (termed 'GCMR') from neurons in the antennal lobe (AL; the insect's primary olfactory center)13,14
. This state-of-the-art technique allows us to probe how odor information is represented in the insect brain. Moreover, because neural responses to odors at this level of olfactory processing are highly sensitive owing to the degree of convergence of the antenna's receptor neurons into AL neurons, AL recordings will allow the detection of active constituents of natural odors efficiently and with high sensitivity. Here we describe GCMR and give an example of its use.
Several general steps are involved in the detection of bioactive volatiles and insect response. Volatiles first need to be collected from sources of interest (in this example we use flowers from the genus Mimulus
(Phyrmaceae)) and characterized as needed using standard GC-MS techniques14-16
. Insects are prepared for study using minimal dissection, after which a recording electrode is inserted into the antennal lobe and multi-channel neural recording begins. Post-processing of the neural data then reveals which particular odorants cause significant neural responses by the insect nervous system.
Although the example we present here is specific to pollination studies, GCMR can be expanded to a wide range of study organisms and volatile sources. For instance, this method can be used in the identification of odorants attracting or repelling vector insects and crop pests. Moreover, GCMR can also be used to identify attractants for beneficial insects, such as pollinators. The technique may be expanded to non-insect subjects as well.
Neuroscience, Issue 72, Neurobiology, Physiology, Biochemistry, Chemistry, Entomlogy, Behavior, electrophysiology, olfaction, olfactory system, insect, multi-channel recording, gas chromatography, pollination, bees, Bombus impatiens, antennae, brain, animal model
Electrophysiological Measurements from a Moth Olfactory System
Institutions: University of California, Davis.
Insect olfactory systems provide unique opportunities for recording odorant-induced responses in the forms of electroantennograms (EAG) and single sensillum recordings (SSR), which are summed responses from all odorant receptor neurons (ORNs) located on the antenna and from those housed in individual sensilla, respectively. These approaches have been exploited for getting a better understanding of insect chemical communication. The identified stimuli can then be used as either attractants or repellents in management strategies for insect pests.
Neuroscience, Issue 49, Insect Olfaction, Electroantennogram (EAG), Single Sensillum Recordings (SSR), navel orangeworm
Analyzing Responses of Mouse Olfactory Sensory Neurons Using the Air-phase Electroolfactogram Recording
Institutions: Johns Hopkins University.
Animals depend on olfaction for many critical behaviors, such as finding food sources, avoiding predators, and identifying conspecifics for mating and other social interactions. The electroolfactogram (EOG) recording is an informative, easy to conduct, and reliable method to assay olfactory function at the level of the olfactory epithelium. Since the 1956 description of the EOG by Ottoson in frogs1
, the EOG recording has been applied in many vertebrates including salamanders, rabbits, rats, mice, and humans (reviewed by Scott and Scott-Johnson, 2002, ref. 2). The recent advances in genetic modification in mice have rekindled interest in recording the EOG for physiological characterization of olfactory function in knock-out and knock-in mice. EOG recordings have been successfully applied to demonstrate the central role of olfactory signal transduction components3-8
, and more recently to characterize the contribution of certain regulatory mechanisms to OSN responses9-12
Odorant detection occurs at the surface of the olfactory epithelium on the cilia of OSNs, where a signal transduction cascade leads to opening of ion channels, generating a current that flows into the cilia and depolarizes the membrane13
. The EOG is the negative potential recorded extracellularly at the surface of the olfactory epithelium upon odorant stimulation, resulting from a summation of the potential changes caused by individual responsive OSNs in the recording field2
. Comparison of the amplitude and kinetics of the EOG thus provide valuable information about how genetic modification and other experimental manipulations influence the molecular signaling underlying the OSN response to odor.
Here we describe an air-phase EOG recording on a preparation of mouse olfactory turbinates. Briefly, after sacrificing the mouse, the olfactory turbinates are exposed by bisecting the head along the midline and removing the septum. The turbinate preparation is then placed in the recording setup, and a recording electrode is placed at the surface of the olfactory epithelium on one of the medial turbinates. A reference electrode is electrically connected to the tissue through a buffer solution. A continuous stream of humidified air is blown over the surface of the epithelium to keep it moist. The vapor of odorant solutions is puffed into the stream of humidified air to stimulate the epithelium. Responses are recorded and digitized for further analysis.
JoVE Neuroscience, Issue 37, olfaction, electrophysiology, field potential, generator potential, EOG
Odorant-induced Responses Recorded from Olfactory Receptor Neurons using the Suction Pipette Technique
Institutions: Monell Chemical Senses Center, University of Cambridge .
Animals sample the odorous environment around them through the chemosensory systems located in the nasal cavity. Chemosensory signals affect complex behaviors such as food choice, predator, conspecific and mate recognition and other socially relevant cues. Olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) are located in the dorsal part of the nasal cavity embedded in the olfactory epithelium. These bipolar neurons send an axon to the olfactory bulb (see Fig. 1
, Reisert & Zhao1
, originally published in the Journal of General Physiology) and extend a single dendrite to the epithelial border from where cilia radiate into the mucus that covers the olfactory epithelium. The cilia contain the signal transduction machinery that ultimately leads to excitatory current influx through the ciliary transduction channels, a cyclic nucleotide-gated (CNG) channel and a Ca2+
channel (Fig. 1
). The ensuing depolarization triggers action potential generation at the cell body2-4
In this video we describe the use of the "suction pipette technique" to record odorant-induced responses from ORNs. This method was originally developed to record from rod photoreceptors5
and a variant of this method can be found at jove.com modified to record from mouse cone photoreceptors6
. The suction pipette technique was later adapted to also record from ORNs7,8
. Briefly, following dissociation of the olfactory epithelium and cell isolation, the entire cell body of an ORN is sucked into the tip of a recording pipette. The dendrite and the cilia remain exposed to the bath solution and thus accessible to solution changes to enable e.g. odorant or pharmacological blocker application. In this configuration, no access to the intracellular environment is gained (no whole-cell voltage clamp) and the intracellular voltage remains free to vary. This allows the simultaneous recording of the slow receptor current that originates at the cilia and fast action potentials fired by the cell body9
. The difference in kinetics between these two signals allows them to be separated using different filter settings. This technique can be used on any wild type or knockout mouse or to record selectively from ORNs that also express GFP to label specific subsets of ORNs, e.g. expressing a given odorant receptor or ion channel.
Neuroscience, Issue 62, Olfactory receptor neurons, ORN, suction pipette technique, receptor current, action potentials, signal transduction, electrophysiology, chemoreceptors
Testing Drosophila Olfaction with a Y-maze Assay
Institutions: UMR-6265 CNRS, UMR-1324 INRA, Université de Bourgogne.
Detecting signals from the environment is essential for animals to ensure their survival. To this aim, they use environmental cues such as vision, mechanoreception, hearing, and chemoperception through taste, via direct contact or through olfaction, which represents the response to a volatile molecule acting at longer range. Volatile chemical molecules are very important signals for most animals in the detection of danger, a source of food, or to communicate between individuals. Drosophila melanogaster
is one of the most common biological models for scientists to explore the cellular and molecular basis of olfaction. In order to highlight olfactory abilities of this small insect, we describe a modified choice protocol based on the Y-maze test classically used with mice. Data obtained with Y-mazes give valuable information to better understand how animals deal with their perpetually changing environment. We introduce a step-by-step protocol to study the impact of odorants on fly exploratory response using this Y-maze assay.
Neuroscience, Issue 88, environmental effects (biological, animal and plant), genetics (animal and plant), life sciences, animal biology, behavioral sciences, Y-maze, olfaction, adult, choice, behavior, Drosophila melanogaster
Calcium Imaging of Odor-evoked Responses in the Drosophila Antennal Lobe
Institutions: University of Lausanne, University of Konstanz.
The antennal lobe is the primary olfactory center in the insect brain and represents the anatomical and functional equivalent of the vertebrate olfactory bulb1-5
. Olfactory information in the external world is transmitted to the antennal lobe by olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs), which segregate to distinct regions of neuropil called glomeruli according to the specific olfactory receptor they express. Here, OSN axons synapse with both local interneurons (LNs), whose processes can innervate many different glomeruli, and projection neurons (PNs), which convey olfactory information to higher olfactory brain regions.
Optical imaging of the activity of OSNs, LNs and PNs in the antennal lobe - traditionally using synthetic calcium indicators (e.g. calcium green, FURA-2) or voltage-sensitive dyes (e.g. RH414) - has long been an important technique to understand how olfactory stimuli are represented as spatial and temporal patterns of glomerular activity in many species of insects6-10
. Development of genetically-encoded neural activity reporters, such as the fluorescent calcium indicators G-CaMP11,12
, the bioluminescent calcium indicator GFP-aequorin14,15
, or a reporter of synaptic transmission, synapto-pHluorin16
has made the olfactory system of the fruitfly, Drosophila melanogaster
, particularly accessible to neurophysiological imaging, complementing its comprehensively-described molecular, electrophysiological and neuroanatomical properties2,4,17
. These reporters can be selectively expressed via binary transcriptional control systems (e.g. GAL4/UAS18
, Q system21
) in defined populations of neurons within the olfactory circuitry to dissect with high spatial and temporal resolution how odor-evoked neural activity is represented, modulated and transformed22-24
Here we describe the preparation and analysis methods to measure odor-evoked responses in the Drosophila
antennal lobe using G-CaMP25-27
. The animal preparation is minimally invasive and can be adapted to imaging using wide-field fluorescence, confocal and two-photon microscopes.
Neuroscience, Issue 61, Drosophila, calcium imaging, antennal lobe, olfaction, neuroscience
Electroantennographic Bioassay as a Screening Tool for Host Plant Volatiles
Institutions: Agricultural Research Service.
Plant volatiles play an important role in plant-insect interactions. Herbivorous insects use plant volatiles, known as kairomones, to locate their host plant.1,2
When a host plant is an important agronomic commodity feeding damage by insect pests can inflict serious economic losses to growers. Accordingly, kairomones can be used as attractants to lure or confuse these insects and, thus, offer an environmentally friendly alternative to pesticides for insect control.3
Unfortunately, plants can emit a vast number volatiles with varying compositions and ratios of emissions dependent upon the phenology of the commodity or the time of day. This makes identification of biologically active components or blends of volatile components an arduous process. To help identify the bioactive components of host plant volatile emissions we employ the laboratory-based screening bioassay electroantennography (EAG). EAG is an effective tool to evaluate and record electrophysiologically the olfactory responses of an insect via their antennal receptors. The EAG screening process can help reduce the number of volatiles tested to identify promising bioactive components. However, EAG bioassays only provide information about activation of receptors. It does not provide information about the type of insect behavior the compound elicits; which could be as an attractant, repellent or other type of behavioral response. Volatiles eliciting a significant response by EAG, relative to an appropriate positive control, are typically taken on to further testing of behavioral responses of the insect pest. The experimental design presented will detail the methodology employed to screen almond-based host plant volatiles4,5
by measurement of the electrophysiological antennal responses of an adult insect pest navel orangeworm (Amyelois transitella
) to single components and simple blends of components via EAG bioassay. The method utilizes two excised antennae placed across a "fork" electrode holder. The protocol demonstrated here presents a rapid, high-throughput standardized method for screening volatiles. Each volatile is at a set, constant amount as to standardize the stimulus level and thus allow antennal responses to be indicative of the relative chemoreceptivity. The negative control helps eliminate the electrophysiological response to both residual solvent and mechanical force of the puff. The positive control (in this instance acetophenone) is a single compound that has elicited a consistent response from male and female navel orangeworm (NOW) moth. An additional semiochemical standard that provides consistent response and is used for bioassay studies with the male NOW moth is (Z,Z)-11,13-hexdecadienal, an aldehyde component from the female-produced sex pheromone.6-8
Plant Biology, Issue 63, bioassay, chemoreception, electroantennography, electrophysiological response, high-throughput, host-plant volatiles, navel orangeworm, screening tool
Inhibitory Synapse Formation in a Co-culture Model Incorporating GABAergic Medium Spiny Neurons and HEK293 Cells Stably Expressing GABAA Receptors
Institutions: University College London.
Inhibitory neurons act in the central nervous system to regulate the dynamics and spatio-temporal co-ordination of neuronal networks. GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid) is the predominant inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain. It is released from the presynaptic terminals of inhibitory neurons within highly specialized intercellular junctions known as synapses, where it binds to GABAA
Rs) present at the plasma membrane of the synapse-receiving, postsynaptic neurons. Activation of these GABA-gated ion channels leads to influx of chloride resulting in postsynaptic potential changes that decrease the probability that these neurons will generate action potentials.
During development, diverse types of inhibitory neurons with distinct morphological, electrophysiological and neurochemical characteristics have the ability to recognize their target neurons and form synapses which incorporate specific GABAA
Rs subtypes. This principle of selective innervation of neuronal targets raises the question as to how the appropriate synaptic partners identify each other.
To elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms, a novel in vitro
co-culture model system was established, in which medium spiny GABAergic neurons, a highly homogenous population of neurons isolated from the embryonic striatum, were cultured with stably transfected HEK293 cell lines that express different GABAA
R subtypes. Synapses form rapidly, efficiently and selectively in this system, and are easily accessible for quantification. Our results indicate that various GABAA
R subtypes differ in their ability to promote synapse formation, suggesting that this reduced in vitro
model system can be used to reproduce, at least in part, the in vivo
conditions required for the recognition of the appropriate synaptic partners and formation of specific synapses. Here the protocols for culturing the medium spiny neurons and generating HEK293 cells lines expressing GABAA
Rs are first described, followed by detailed instructions on how to combine these two cell types in co-culture and analyze the formation of synaptic contacts.
Neuroscience, Issue 93, Developmental neuroscience, synaptogenesis, synaptic inhibition, co-culture, stable cell lines, GABAergic, medium spiny neurons, HEK 293 cell line
Membrane Potentials, Synaptic Responses, Neuronal Circuitry, Neuromodulation and Muscle Histology Using the Crayfish: Student Laboratory Exercises
Institutions: University of Kentucky, University of Toronto.
The purpose of this report is to help develop an understanding of the effects caused by ion gradients across a biological membrane. Two aspects that influence a cell's membrane potential and which we address in these experiments are: (1) Ion concentration of K+
on the outside of the membrane, and (2) the permeability of the membrane to specific ions. The crayfish abdominal extensor muscles are in groupings with some being tonic (slow) and others phasic (fast) in their biochemical and physiological phenotypes, as well as in their structure; the motor neurons that innervate these muscles are correspondingly different in functional characteristics. We use these muscles as well as the superficial, tonic abdominal flexor muscle to demonstrate properties in synaptic transmission. In addition, we introduce a sensory-CNS-motor neuron-muscle circuit to demonstrate the effect of cuticular sensory stimulation as well as the influence of neuromodulators on certain aspects of the circuit. With the techniques obtained in this exercise, one can begin to answer many questions remaining in other experimental preparations as well as in physiological applications related to medicine and health. We have demonstrated the usefulness of model invertebrate preparations to address fundamental questions pertinent to all animals.
Neuroscience, Issue 47, Invertebrate, Crayfish, neurophysiology, muscle, anatomy, electrophysiology
A Proboscis Extension Response Protocol for Investigating Behavioral Plasticity in Insects: Application to Basic, Biomedical, and Agricultural Research
Institutions: Arizona State University.
Insects modify their responses to stimuli through experience of associating those stimuli with events important for survival (e.g.
, food, mates, threats). There are several behavioral mechanisms through which an insect learns salient associations and relates them to these events. It is important to understand this behavioral plasticity for programs aimed toward assisting insects that are beneficial for agriculture. This understanding can also be used for discovering solutions to biomedical and agricultural problems created by insects that act as disease vectors and pests. The Proboscis Extension Response (PER) conditioning protocol was developed for honey bees (Apis mellifera
) over 50 years ago to study how they perceive and learn about floral odors, which signal the nectar and pollen resources a colony needs for survival. The PER procedure provides a robust and easy-to-employ framework for studying several different ecologically relevant mechanisms of behavioral plasticity. It is easily adaptable for use with several other insect species and other behavioral reflexes. These protocols can be readily employed in conjunction with various means for monitoring neural activity in the CNS via electrophysiology or bioimaging, or for manipulating targeted neuromodulatory pathways. It is a robust assay for rapidly detecting sub-lethal effects on behavior caused by environmental stressors, toxins or pesticides.
We show how the PER protocol is straightforward to implement using two procedures. One is suitable as a laboratory exercise for students or for quick assays of the effect of an experimental treatment. The other provides more thorough control of variables, which is important for studies of behavioral conditioning. We show how several measures for the behavioral response ranging from binary yes/no to more continuous variable like latency and duration of proboscis extension can be used to test hypotheses. And, we discuss some pitfalls that researchers commonly encounter when they use the procedure for the first time.
Neuroscience, Issue 91, PER, conditioning, honey bee, olfaction, olfactory processing, learning, memory, toxin assay
High-throughput Analysis of Mammalian Olfactory Receptors: Measurement of Receptor Activation via Luciferase Activity
Institutions: Monell Chemical Senses Center.
Odorants create unique and overlapping patterns of olfactory receptor activation, allowing a family of approximately 1,000 murine and 400 human receptors to recognize thousands of odorants. Odorant ligands have been published for fewer than 6% of human receptors1-11
. This lack of data is due in part to difficulties functionally expressing these receptors in heterologous systems. Here, we describe a method for expressing the majority of the olfactory receptor family in Hana3A cells, followed by high-throughput assessment of olfactory receptor activation using a luciferase reporter assay. This assay can be used to (1) screen panels of odorants against panels of olfactory receptors; (2) confirm odorant/receptor interaction via dose response curves; and (3) compare receptor activation levels among receptor variants. In our sample data, 328 olfactory receptors were screened against 26 odorants. Odorant/receptor pairs with varying response scores were selected and tested in dose response. These data indicate that a screen is an effective method to enrich for odorant/receptor pairs that will pass a dose response experiment, i.e.
receptors that have a bona fide response to an odorant. Therefore, this high-throughput luciferase assay is an effective method to characterize olfactory receptors—an essential step toward a model of odor coding in the mammalian olfactory system.
Neuroscience, Issue 88, Firefly luciferase, Renilla Luciferase, Dual-Glo Luciferase Assay, olfaction, Olfactory receptor, Odorant, GPCR, High-throughput
Whole-cell Patch-clamp Recordings from Morphologically- and Neurochemically-identified Hippocampal Interneurons
Institutions: Charité Universitätmedizin.
GABAergic inhibitory interneurons play a central role within neuronal circuits of the brain. Interneurons comprise a small subset of the neuronal population (10-20%), but show a high level of physiological, morphological, and neurochemical heterogeneity, reflecting their diverse functions. Therefore, investigation of interneurons provides important insights into the organization principles and function of neuronal circuits. This, however, requires an integrated physiological and neuroanatomical approach for the selection and identification of individual interneuron types. Whole-cell patch-clamp recording from acute brain slices of transgenic animals, expressing fluorescent proteins under the promoters of interneuron-specific markers, provides an efficient method to target and electrophysiologically characterize intrinsic and synaptic properties of specific interneuron types. Combined with intracellular dye labeling, this approach can be extended with post-hoc morphological and immunocytochemical analysis, enabling systematic identification of recorded neurons. These methods can be tailored to suit a broad range of scientific questions regarding functional properties of diverse types of cortical neurons.
Neuroscience, Issue 91, electrophysiology, acute slice, whole-cell patch-clamp recording, neuronal morphology, immunocytochemistry, parvalbumin, hippocampus, inhibition, GABAergic interneurons, synaptic transmission, IPSC, GABA-B receptor
Fast Micro-iontophoresis of Glutamate and GABA: A Useful Tool to Investigate Synaptic Integration
Institutions: University of Bonn, Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen e.V. (DZNE).
One of the fundamental interests in neuroscience is to understand the integration of excitatory and inhibitory inputs along the very complex structure of the dendritic tree, which eventually leads to neuronal output of action potentials at the axon. The influence of diverse spatial and temporal parameters of specific synaptic input on neuronal output is currently under investigation, e.g.
the distance-dependent attenuation of dendritic inputs, the location-dependent interaction of spatially segregated inputs, the influence of GABAergig inhibition on excitatory integration, linear and non-linear integration modes, and many more.
With fast micro-iontophoresis of glutamate and GABA it is possible to precisely investigate the spatial and temporal integration of glutamatergic excitation and GABAergic inhibition. Critical technical requirements are either a triggered fluorescent lamp, light-emitting diode (LED), or a two-photon scanning microscope to visualize dendritic branches without introducing significant photo-damage of the tissue. Furthermore, it is very important to have a micro-iontophoresis amplifier that allows for fast capacitance compensation of high resistance pipettes. Another crucial point is that no transmitter is involuntarily released by the pipette during the experiment.
Once established, this technique will give reliable and reproducible signals with a high neurotransmitter and location specificity. Compared to glutamate and GABA uncaging, fast iontophoresis allows using both transmitters at the same time but at very distant locations without limitation to the field of view. There are also advantages compared to focal electrical stimulation of axons: with micro-iontophoresis the location of the input site is definitely known and it is sure that only the neurotransmitter of interest is released. However it has to be considered that with micro-iontophoresis only the postsynapse is activated and presynaptic aspects of neurotransmitter release are not resolved. In this article we demonstrate how to set up micro-iontophoresis in brain slice experiments.
Neuroscience, Issue 77, Neurobiology, Molecular Biology, Cellular Biology, Physiology, Biomedical Engineering, Biophysics, Biochemistry, biology (general), animal biology, Nervous System, Life Sciences (General), Neurosciences, brain slices, dendrites, inhibition, excitation, glutamate, GABA, micro-iontophoresis, iontophoresis, neurons, patch clamp, whole cell recordings
Inducing Plasticity of Astrocytic Receptors by Manipulation of Neuronal Firing Rates
Institutions: University of California Riverside, University of California Riverside, University of California Riverside.
Close to two decades of research has established that astrocytes in situ
and in vivo
express numerous G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that can be stimulated by neuronally-released transmitter. However, the ability of astrocytic receptors to exhibit plasticity in response to changes in neuronal activity has received little attention. Here we describe a model system that can be used to globally scale up or down astrocytic group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) in acute brain slices. Included are methods on how to prepare parasagittal hippocampal slices, construct chambers suitable for long-term slice incubation, bidirectionally manipulate neuronal action potential frequency, load astrocytes and astrocyte processes with fluorescent Ca2+
indicator, and measure changes in astrocytic Gq GPCR activity by recording spontaneous and evoked astrocyte Ca2+
events using confocal microscopy. In essence, a “calcium roadmap” is provided for how to measure plasticity of astrocytic Gq GPCRs. Applications of the technique for study of astrocytes are discussed. Having an understanding of how astrocytic receptor signaling is affected by changes in neuronal activity has important implications for both normal synaptic function as well as processes underlying neurological disorders and neurodegenerative disease.
Neuroscience, Issue 85, astrocyte, plasticity, mGluRs, neuronal Firing, electrophysiology, Gq GPCRs, Bolus-loading, calcium, microdomains, acute slices, Hippocampus, mouse
Flash Photolysis of Caged Compounds in the Cilia of Olfactory Sensory Neurons
Institutions: International School for Advanced Studies, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Italian Institute of Technology.
Photolysis of caged compounds allows the production of rapid and localized increases in the concentration of various physiologically active compounds1
. Caged compounds are molecules made physiologically inactive by a chemical cage that can be broken by a flash of ultraviolet light. Here, we show how to obtain patch-clamp recordings combined with photolysis of caged compounds for the study of olfactory transduction in dissociated mouse olfactory sensory neurons. The process of olfactory transduction (Figure 1) takes place in the cilia of olfactory sensory neurons, where odorant binding to receptors leads to the increase of cAMP that opens cyclic nucleotide-gated (CNG) channels2
. Ca entry through CNG channels activates Ca-activated Cl channels. We show how to dissociate neurons from the mouse olfactory epithelium3
and how to activate CNG channels or Ca-activated Cl channels by photolysis of caged cAMP4
or caged Ca5
. We use a flash lamp6,7
to apply ultraviolet flashes to the ciliary region to uncage cAMP or Ca while patch-clamp recordings are taken to measure the current in the whole-cell voltage-clamp configuration8-11
Neuroscience, Issue 55, caged compounds, caged cAMP, caged Ca, olfactory sensory neuron, olfaction, whole-cell patch-clamp, flash photolysis, flash lampc
Assaying Surface Expression of Chemosensory Receptors in Heterologous Cells
Institutions: Duke University, Duke University.
The vivid world of odors is recognized by the sense of olfaction. Olfaction in mice is mediated by a repertoire of about 1200 G Protein Coupled Receptors (GPCRs) 1
that are postulated to bind volatile odorant molecules and converting the extracellular signal into an intracellular signal by coupling with G protein Gαolf. Binding of the odorants to the receptors is thought to follow a combinatorial rule, that is, one odorant may bind several receptors and one receptor may bind several odorants to varying degrees 2
. Biochemical, signaling and ligand binding studies have been conveniently carried out for most GPCRs using heterologous cells. However use of heterologous cells for study of odorant receptors, was precluded for a long time since on transfection they failed to export to the surface. Saito et al have demonstrated single membrane pass Receptor Transporting Protein (RTP) family chaperones show enhanced expression in the olfactory sensory neurons and act as chaperones to traffic odorant receptors to the surface in heterologous cells, when co transfected together 3
. To carry out biochemical assays for receptors using heterologous cells, one must first determine if the receptor shows robust surface expression in the cell line. This can be assayed by overexpressing the receptors with the chaperone RTP1S followed by live cell staining to fluorescently label the extracellular domain or a tag in the extracellular domain exclusively. Here we demonstrate a protocol to carry out live cell staining that can be used to detect odorant receptors on the surface of HEK293T cells conveniently. In addition, it may also be used to assay for surface expression of other chemosensory receptors or GPCRs.
Neuroscience, Issue 48, heterologous, receptors, cell, surface, staining
High-resolution Measurement of Odor-Driven Behavior in Drosophila Larvae
Institutions: Rockefeller University.
Olfactory responses in Drosophila larvae have been traditionally studied in Petri dishes comprising a single peripheral odor source. In this behavioral paradigm, the experimenter usually assumes that the rapid diffusion of odorant molecules from the source leads to the creation of a stable gradient in the dish. To establish a quantitative correlation between sensory inputs and behavioral responses, it is necessary to achieve a more thorough characterization of the odorant stimulus conditions. In this video article, we describe a new method allowing the construction of odorant gradients with stable and controllable geometries. We briefly illustrate how these gradients can be used to screen for olfactory defects (full and partial anosmia) and to study more subtle features of chemotaxis behavior.
Neuroscience, issue 11, odor, olfactory, Drosophila, behavior
Whole Mount Immunolabeling of Olfactory Receptor Neurons in the Drosophila Antenna
Institutions: Doshisha University, RIKEN Brain Science Institute, RIKEN Brain Science Institute.
Odorant molecules bind to their target receptors in a precise and coordinated manner. Each receptor recognizes a specific signal and relays this information to the brain. As such, determining how olfactory information is transferred to the brain, modifying both perception and behavior, merits investigation. Interestingly, there is emerging evidence that cellular transduction and transcriptional factors are involved in the diversification of olfactory receptor neuron. Here we provide a robust whole mount immunological labeling method to assay in vivo olfactory receptor neuron organization. Using this method, we identified all olfactory receptor neurons with anti-ELAV antibody, a known pan-neural marker and Or49a-mCD8::GFP, an olfactory receptor neuron specifically expressed in Nba neuron using anti-GFP antibody.
Neuroscience, Issue 87,
Developmental biology, Drosophila, Whole mount immunolabeling, olfactory receptor neurons, antennae, sensory organ