Optogenetic elevation of postsynaptic cGMP in the hippocampal dentate gyrus enhances LTP and modifies mouse behaviors

A major intracellular messenger implicated in synaptic plasticity and cognitive functions both in health and disease is cyclic GMP (cGMP). Utilizing a photoactivatable guanylyl cyclase (BlgC) actuator to increase cGMP in dentate granule neurons of the hippocampus by light, we studied the effects of...

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Main Authors: Jelena Borovac, Jayant Rai, Megan Valencia, Hang Li, John Georgiou, Graham L. Collingridge, Keizo Takao, Kenichi Okamoto
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2024-11-01
Series:Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience
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Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnmol.2024.1479360/full
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author Jelena Borovac
Jelena Borovac
Jelena Borovac
Jayant Rai
Jayant Rai
Megan Valencia
Megan Valencia
Hang Li
John Georgiou
Graham L. Collingridge
Graham L. Collingridge
Graham L. Collingridge
Keizo Takao
Keizo Takao
Keizo Takao
Kenichi Okamoto
Kenichi Okamoto
author_facet Jelena Borovac
Jelena Borovac
Jelena Borovac
Jayant Rai
Jayant Rai
Megan Valencia
Megan Valencia
Hang Li
John Georgiou
Graham L. Collingridge
Graham L. Collingridge
Graham L. Collingridge
Keizo Takao
Keizo Takao
Keizo Takao
Kenichi Okamoto
Kenichi Okamoto
author_sort Jelena Borovac
collection DOAJ
description A major intracellular messenger implicated in synaptic plasticity and cognitive functions both in health and disease is cyclic GMP (cGMP). Utilizing a photoactivatable guanylyl cyclase (BlgC) actuator to increase cGMP in dentate granule neurons of the hippocampus by light, we studied the effects of spatiotemporal cGMP elevations in synaptic and cognitive functions. At medial perforant path to dentate gyrus (MPP-DG) synapses, we found enhanced long-term potentiation (LTP) of synaptic responses when postsynaptic cGMP was elevated during the induction period. Basal synaptic transmission and the paired-pulse ratio were unaffected, suggesting the cGMP effect on LTP was postsynaptic in origin. In behaving mice implanted with a fiber optic and wireless LED device, their performance following DG photoactivation (5–10 min) was studied in a variety of behavioral tasks. There were enhancements in reference memory and social behavior within tens of minutes following DG BlgC photoactivation, and with time (hours), an anxiogenic effect developed. Thus, postsynaptic cGMP elevations, specifically in the DG and specifically during conditions that evoke synaptic plasticity or during experience, are able to rapidly modify synaptic strength and behavioral responses, respectively. The optogenetics technology and new roles for cGMP in the DG may have applications in brain disorders that are impacted by dysregulated cGMP signaling, such as Alzheimer’s disease.
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publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
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spelling doaj-art-ad5fc69ea26d48698e6b09b7c53c33d62025-08-20T02:27:31ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience1662-50992024-11-011710.3389/fnmol.2024.14793601479360Optogenetic elevation of postsynaptic cGMP in the hippocampal dentate gyrus enhances LTP and modifies mouse behaviorsJelena Borovac0Jelena Borovac1Jelena Borovac2Jayant Rai3Jayant Rai4Megan Valencia5Megan Valencia6Hang Li7John Georgiou8Graham L. Collingridge9Graham L. Collingridge10Graham L. Collingridge11Keizo Takao12Keizo Takao13Keizo Takao14Kenichi Okamoto15Kenichi Okamoto16Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, CanadaDepartment of Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, CanadaDepartment of Behavioral Physiology, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, JapanLunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, CanadaDepartment of Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, CanadaLunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, CanadaDepartment of Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, CanadaLunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, CanadaLunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, CanadaLunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, CanadaDepartment of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, CanadaTANZ Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases (CRND), University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, CanadaDepartment of Behavioral Physiology, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, JapanDepartment of Behavioral Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, JapanResearch Centre for Idling Brain Science, University of Toyama, Toyama, JapanLunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, CanadaDepartment of Molecular Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, CanadaA major intracellular messenger implicated in synaptic plasticity and cognitive functions both in health and disease is cyclic GMP (cGMP). Utilizing a photoactivatable guanylyl cyclase (BlgC) actuator to increase cGMP in dentate granule neurons of the hippocampus by light, we studied the effects of spatiotemporal cGMP elevations in synaptic and cognitive functions. At medial perforant path to dentate gyrus (MPP-DG) synapses, we found enhanced long-term potentiation (LTP) of synaptic responses when postsynaptic cGMP was elevated during the induction period. Basal synaptic transmission and the paired-pulse ratio were unaffected, suggesting the cGMP effect on LTP was postsynaptic in origin. In behaving mice implanted with a fiber optic and wireless LED device, their performance following DG photoactivation (5–10 min) was studied in a variety of behavioral tasks. There were enhancements in reference memory and social behavior within tens of minutes following DG BlgC photoactivation, and with time (hours), an anxiogenic effect developed. Thus, postsynaptic cGMP elevations, specifically in the DG and specifically during conditions that evoke synaptic plasticity or during experience, are able to rapidly modify synaptic strength and behavioral responses, respectively. The optogenetics technology and new roles for cGMP in the DG may have applications in brain disorders that are impacted by dysregulated cGMP signaling, such as Alzheimer’s disease.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnmol.2024.1479360/fullcGMPoptogeneticselectrophysiologylong-term potentiationsynaptic plasticitymemory
spellingShingle Jelena Borovac
Jelena Borovac
Jelena Borovac
Jayant Rai
Jayant Rai
Megan Valencia
Megan Valencia
Hang Li
John Georgiou
Graham L. Collingridge
Graham L. Collingridge
Graham L. Collingridge
Keizo Takao
Keizo Takao
Keizo Takao
Kenichi Okamoto
Kenichi Okamoto
Optogenetic elevation of postsynaptic cGMP in the hippocampal dentate gyrus enhances LTP and modifies mouse behaviors
Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience
cGMP
optogenetics
electrophysiology
long-term potentiation
synaptic plasticity
memory
title Optogenetic elevation of postsynaptic cGMP in the hippocampal dentate gyrus enhances LTP and modifies mouse behaviors
title_full Optogenetic elevation of postsynaptic cGMP in the hippocampal dentate gyrus enhances LTP and modifies mouse behaviors
title_fullStr Optogenetic elevation of postsynaptic cGMP in the hippocampal dentate gyrus enhances LTP and modifies mouse behaviors
title_full_unstemmed Optogenetic elevation of postsynaptic cGMP in the hippocampal dentate gyrus enhances LTP and modifies mouse behaviors
title_short Optogenetic elevation of postsynaptic cGMP in the hippocampal dentate gyrus enhances LTP and modifies mouse behaviors
title_sort optogenetic elevation of postsynaptic cgmp in the hippocampal dentate gyrus enhances ltp and modifies mouse behaviors
topic cGMP
optogenetics
electrophysiology
long-term potentiation
synaptic plasticity
memory
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnmol.2024.1479360/full
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