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Connexin36 expression in major centers of the auditory system in the CNS of mouse and rat: Evidence for neurons forming purely electrical synapses and morphologically mixed synapses.

ABSTRACT: Electrical synapses formed by gap junctions composed of connexin36 (Cx36) are widely distributed in the mammalian central nervous system (CNS). Here, we used immunofluorescence methods to document the expression of Cx36 in the cochlear nucleus and in various structures of the auditory pathway of rat and mouse. Labeling of Cx36 visualized exclusively as Cx36-puncta was densely distributed primarily on the somata and initial dendrites of neuronal populations in the ventral cochlear nucleus, and was abundant in superficial layers of the dorsal cochlear nucleus. Other auditory centers displaying Cx36-puncta included the medial nucleus of the trapezoid body (MNTB), regions surrounding the lateral superior olivary nucleus, the dorsal nucleus of the medial lemniscus, the nucleus sagulum, all subnuclei of the inferior colliculus, and the auditory cerebral cortex. In EGFP-Cx36 transgenic mice, EGFP reporter was detected in neurons located in each of auditory centers that harbored Cx36-puncta. In the ventral cochlear nuclei and the MNTB, many neuronal somata were heavily innervated by nerve terminals containing vesicular glutamate transporter-1 (vglut1) and Cx36 was frequently localized at these terminals. Cochlear ablation caused a near total depletion of vglut1-positive terminals in the ventral cochlear nuclei, with a commensurate loss of labeling for Cx36 around most neuronal somata, but preserved Cx36-puncta at somatic neuronal appositions. The results suggest that electrical synapses formed by Cx36-containing gap junctions occur in most of the widely distributed centers of the auditory system. Further, it appears that morphologically mixed chemical/electrical synapses formed by nerve terminals are abundant in the ventral cochlear nucleus, including those at endbulbs of Held formed by cochlear primary afferent fibers, and those at calyx of Held synapses on MNTB neurons.

SUBMITTER: Rubio ME

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4576740 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Connexin36 expression in major centers of the auditory system in the CNS of mouse and rat: Evidence for neurons forming purely electrical synapses and morphologically mixed synapses.

Rubio M E ME Nagy J I JI

Neuroscience 20150715

Electrical synapses formed by gap junctions composed of connexin36 (Cx36) are widely distributed in the mammalian central nervous system (CNS). Here, we used immunofluorescence methods to document the expression of Cx36 in the cochlear nucleus and in various structures of the auditory pathway of rat and mouse. Labeling of Cx36 visualized exclusively as Cx36-puncta was densely distributed primarily on the somata and initial dendrites of neuronal populations in the ventral cochlear nucleus, and wa ...[more]

PMID: 26188286

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Project description:AII amacrine cells are essential interneurons of the primary rod pathway and transmit rod-driven signals to ON cone bipolar cells to enable scotopic vision. Gap junctions made of connexin36 (Cx36) mediate electrical coupling among AII cells and between AII cells and ON cone bipolar cells. These gap junctions underlie a remarkable degree of plasticity and are modulated by different signaling cascades. In particular, Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) has been characterized as an important regulator of Cx36, capable of potentiating electrical coupling in AII cells. However, it is unclear which CaMKII isoform mediates this effect. To obtain a more detailed understanding of the isoform composition of CaMKII at retinal gap junctions, we analyzed the retinal distribution of all four CaMKII isoforms using confocal microscopy. These experiments revealed a differential distribution of CaMKII isoforms: CaMKII-? was strongly expressed in starburst amacrine cells, which are known to lack electrical coupling. CaMKII-? was abundant in OFF bipolar cells, which form electrical synapses in the outer and the inner retina. CaMKII-? was diffusely distributed across the entire retina and could not be assigned to a specific cell type. CaMKII-? labeling was evident in bipolar and AII amacrine cells, which contain the majority of Cx36-immunoreactive puncta in the inner retina. We double-labeled retinas for Cx36 and the four CaMKII isoforms and revealed that the composition of the CaMKII enzyme differs between gap junctions in the outer and the inner retina: in the outer retina, only CaMKII-? colocalized with Cx36-containing gap junctions, whereas in the inner retina, CaMKII-? and -? colocalized with Cx36. This finding suggests that gap junctions in the inner and the outer retina may be regulated differently although they both contain the same connexin. Taken together, our study identifies CaMKII-? and -? as Cx36-specific regulators in the mouse retina with CaMKII-? regulating the primary rod pathway.

Dataset Information

Connexin36 expression in major centers of the auditory system in the CNS of mouse and rat: Evidence for neurons forming purely electrical synapses and morphologically mixed synapses.

Publications

Connexin36 expression in major centers of the auditory system in the CNS of mouse and rat: Evidence for neurons forming purely electrical synapses and morphologically mixed synapses.

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