Probing Single Synapses via the Photolytic Release of Neurotransmitters
The development of two-photon microscopy has revolutionized our understanding of how synapses are formed and how they transform synaptic inputs in dendritic spines—tiny protrusions that cover the dendrites of pyramidal neurons that receive most excitatory synaptic information in the brain. These dis...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2019-07-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Synaptic Neuroscience |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnsyn.2019.00019/full |
| _version_ | 1818042362897629184 |
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| author | Diana E. Mitchell Diana E. Mitchell Éric Martineau Éric Martineau Sabrina Tazerart Sabrina Tazerart Roberto Araya Roberto Araya |
| author_facet | Diana E. Mitchell Diana E. Mitchell Éric Martineau Éric Martineau Sabrina Tazerart Sabrina Tazerart Roberto Araya Roberto Araya |
| author_sort | Diana E. Mitchell |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The development of two-photon microscopy has revolutionized our understanding of how synapses are formed and how they transform synaptic inputs in dendritic spines—tiny protrusions that cover the dendrites of pyramidal neurons that receive most excitatory synaptic information in the brain. These discoveries have led us to better comprehend the neuronal computations that take place at the level of dendritic spines as well as within neuronal circuits with unprecedented resolution. Here, we describe a method that uses a two-photon (2P) microscope and 2P uncaging of caged neurotransmitters for the activation of single and multiple spines in the dendrites of cortical pyramidal neurons. In addition, we propose a cost-effective description of the components necessary for the construction of a one laser source-2P microscope capable of nearly simultaneous 2P uncaging of neurotransmitters and 2P calcium imaging of the activated spines and nearby dendrites. We provide a brief overview on how the use of these techniques have helped researchers in the last 15 years unravel the function of spines in: (a) information processing; (b) storage; and (c) integration of excitatory synaptic inputs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-10T08:45:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5af59d2dfd1548e49fcdf60dce220783 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1663-3563 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-10T08:45:07Z |
| publishDate | 2019-07-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Synaptic Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj.art-5af59d2dfd1548e49fcdf60dce2207832022-12-22T01:55:45ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Synaptic Neuroscience1663-35632019-07-011110.3389/fnsyn.2019.00019469301Probing Single Synapses via the Photolytic Release of NeurotransmittersDiana E. Mitchell0Diana E. Mitchell1Éric Martineau2Éric Martineau3Sabrina Tazerart4Sabrina Tazerart5Roberto Araya6Roberto Araya7Department of Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, CanadaThe CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center, Montreal, QC, CanadaDepartment of Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, CanadaThe CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center, Montreal, QC, CanadaDepartment of Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, CanadaThe CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center, Montreal, QC, CanadaDepartment of Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, CanadaThe CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center, Montreal, QC, CanadaThe development of two-photon microscopy has revolutionized our understanding of how synapses are formed and how they transform synaptic inputs in dendritic spines—tiny protrusions that cover the dendrites of pyramidal neurons that receive most excitatory synaptic information in the brain. These discoveries have led us to better comprehend the neuronal computations that take place at the level of dendritic spines as well as within neuronal circuits with unprecedented resolution. Here, we describe a method that uses a two-photon (2P) microscope and 2P uncaging of caged neurotransmitters for the activation of single and multiple spines in the dendrites of cortical pyramidal neurons. In addition, we propose a cost-effective description of the components necessary for the construction of a one laser source-2P microscope capable of nearly simultaneous 2P uncaging of neurotransmitters and 2P calcium imaging of the activated spines and nearby dendrites. We provide a brief overview on how the use of these techniques have helped researchers in the last 15 years unravel the function of spines in: (a) information processing; (b) storage; and (c) integration of excitatory synaptic inputs.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnsyn.2019.00019/fulldendritic spinespyramidal neuronnon-linear microscopysynaptic transmissionneocortextwo-photon (2P) uncaging |
| spellingShingle | Diana E. Mitchell Diana E. Mitchell Éric Martineau Éric Martineau Sabrina Tazerart Sabrina Tazerart Roberto Araya Roberto Araya Probing Single Synapses via the Photolytic Release of Neurotransmitters Frontiers in Synaptic Neuroscience dendritic spines pyramidal neuron non-linear microscopy synaptic transmission neocortex two-photon (2P) uncaging |
| title | Probing Single Synapses via the Photolytic Release of Neurotransmitters |
| title_full | Probing Single Synapses via the Photolytic Release of Neurotransmitters |
| title_fullStr | Probing Single Synapses via the Photolytic Release of Neurotransmitters |
| title_full_unstemmed | Probing Single Synapses via the Photolytic Release of Neurotransmitters |
| title_short | Probing Single Synapses via the Photolytic Release of Neurotransmitters |
| title_sort | probing single synapses via the photolytic release of neurotransmitters |
| topic | dendritic spines pyramidal neuron non-linear microscopy synaptic transmission neocortex two-photon (2P) uncaging |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fnsyn.2019.00019/full |
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