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Persistent firing in LEC III neurons is differentially modulated by learning and aging
Carmen Lin1, Venus N Sherathiya1, M Matthew Oh1
1Department of Physiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, United States.
Elife
|July 21, 2020
Summary
Successful learning enhances persistent firing in the lateral entorhinal cortex (LEC) layer III. This neural activity is crucial for temporal associative learning, with declines contributing to age-related learning impairments.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Aging Research
Background:
- Persistent firing in lateral entorhinal cortex layer III (LEC III) is a potential mechanism for temporal associative learning.
- The role of LEC III persistent firing in aging and learning remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of LEC III persistent firing in temporal associative learning.
- To examine how aging affects LEC III persistent firing capacity.
- To determine if learning enhances LEC III persistent firing.
Main Methods:
- In vitro electrophysiological recordings of LEC III neurons from young and aged rats.
- Behavioral training on trace eyeblink conditioning.
- Analysis of neuronal persistent firing properties, including afterdepolarization and afterhyperpolarization.
Main Results:
- Aged rats exhibited lower persistent firing ability compared to young rats.
- Learning-impaired aged rats showed reduced persistent firing capacity.
- Successful trace eyeblink conditioning increased persistent firing ability in both young and aged rats.
- Changes in persistent firing were linked to alterations in afterdepolarization and postburst afterhyperpolarization.
Conclusions:
- Successful learning enhances persistent firing ability in LEC III.
- Reduced persistent firing contributes to age-related learning impairments.
- LEC III persistent firing is a key neural substrate for temporal associative learning.
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