Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Silent synapses in developing cerebellar granule neurons.

Gabriele Losi1, Kate Prybylowski, Zhanyan Fu

  • 1Departments of Physiology and Biophysics, Georgetown University School of Medicine, 3900 Reservoir Road, Washington, DC 20007, USA.

Journal of Neurophysiology
|March 6, 2002
PubMed
Summary

Silent synapses, lacking alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptors, are present in developing cerebellar granule cells. These N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor-only synapses mature over time, losing their silent nature.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Spontaneous cortical vasodynamics form a multiscale propagation architecture in the awake brain.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026
Same author

Multimodal analysis reveals cellular diversity and divergent circuits of the zona incerta.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same author

APOE4 and doxorubicin impair inhibitory interneuron function and homeostatic regulation in the entorhinal cortex.

PloS one·2026
Same author

Reduced mediodorsal thalamus activity underlies aberrant belief dynamics in a genetic mouse model of schizophrenia.

Nature neuroscience·2026
Same author

Temporal and Cell-Specific Regulation of Synaptic Homeostasis by the Chromatin Remodeler Chd1.

Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany)·2026
Same author

High frequency head impact exposure changes hippocampal sharp-wave ripple architecture.

PloS one·2026

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cellular Neuroscience
  • Synaptic Plasticity

Background:

  • Silent synapses, characterized by N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) but not alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptors, are crucial for synaptic plasticity.
  • These synapses are functionally silent at resting membrane potentials due to magnesium (Mg2+) block of NMDA receptors.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the presence and developmental changes of silent synapses in cerebellar granule cells.
  • To understand the functional properties and maturation of these synapses during early development.

Main Methods:

  • Patch-clamp recordings in whole-cell configuration were used to measure spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents (sEPSCs) in rat cerebellar granule cells.
  • Recordings were performed in cultured neurons and brain slices at different developmental stages and Mg2+ concentrations.

Related Experiment Videos

  • NMDA-sEPSCs and AMPA-sEPSCs were distinguished by holding potential, and their frequencies were compared.

    • Main Results:

    • Silent synapses, evidenced by NMDA-sEPSCs without detectable AMPA-sEPSCs, were found in developing cerebellar granule cells, particularly in younger rats and early cultures.
    • The frequency of NMDA-sEPSCs was higher than AMPA-sEPSCs in developing cells, indicating a prevalence of silent synapses.
    • Synaptic maturation involved an increase in AMPA-sEPSCs and a decrease in the NMDA to AMPA frequency ratio, correlated with developmental changes in NMDA receptor kinetics.

    Conclusions:

    • Silent synapses are present in developing cerebellar granule cells and contribute to excitatory neurotransmission.
    • These synapses undergo functional maturation, acquiring AMPA receptor responses during development.
    • The developmental disappearance of silent synapses may be linked to the expression of specific NMDA receptor subunits (e.g., NR2A) that confer faster synaptic kinetics.