Rossi CA, Lehmkuhle MJ, Dudek FE (2012) Evidence that focal hippocampal interneuron loss disrupts theta- and gamma- band activity. Neuroscience 2012 Abstracts 918.06. Society for Neuroscience, New Orleans, LA.
Summary: Hippocampal theta (6-12 Hz) and gamma (40-100 Hz) activity are oscillatory local field potentials (LFPs) that are thought to play a critical role in the encoding and storage of new information. GABA-ergic interneurons are hypothetically involved in the generation and pacing of these oscillatory patterns of activity. The current study aimed to directly test the hypothesis that interneurons are responsible for local gamma and theta generation in the dorsal CA1 region of the hippocampus in mice. Selective focal interneuron lesions were made by intrahippocampal injection of the targeted neurotoxin SSP-Saporin into dorsal CA1 in the hippocampus of GAD67-GFP transgenic mice. Chronic recording electrodes were also implanted in the lesion area. LFPs were monitored continuously, along with video recordings of the subjects, for a period of several weeks. LFP recordings were analyzed over 24-hour periods for the occurrence of theta- and gamma-band activity. Analysis of LFP data revealed attenuation of both local theta and gamma activity in SSP-saporin-injected animals compared to controls. These results suggest a direct role of GABA-ergic interneurons in the generation of local rhythmic activity in these two frequency bands, and, by extension, an important role in learning and memory processes.
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