How, when, and where new inhibitory neurons release neurotransmitters in the adult olfactory bulb

Cedric Bardy, Mariana Alonso, Walid Bouthour, Pierre-Marie Lledo

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    50 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Adult-born neurons continuously incorporate into the olfactory bulb where they rapidly establish contacts with a variety of synaptic inputs. Little is known, however, about the functional properties of their output. Characterization of synaptic outputs from new neurons is essential to assess the functional impact of adult neurogenesis on mature circuits. Here, we used optogenetics to control neurotransmitter release from new neurons. We found that light-induced synaptic GABA release from adult-born neurons leads to profound modifications of postsynaptic target firing patterns. We revealed that functional output synapses form just after new cells acquire the faculty to spike, but most synapses were made a month later. Despite discrepancies in the timing of new synapse recruitment, the properties of postsynaptic signals remain constant. Remarkably, we found that all major cell types of the olfactory bulb circuit, including output neurons and several distinct subtypes of local interneurons, were contacted by adult-born neurons. Thus, this study provides new insights into how new neurons integrate into the adult neural network and may influence the sense of smell.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)17023-17034
    Number of pages12
    JournalJournal of Neuroscience
    Volume30
    Issue number50
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 15 Dec 2010

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