Enhanced Learning and Memory and Altered GABAergic Synaptic Transmission in Mice Lacking the α5 Subunit of the GABA A Receptor
Year: 2002
Type: article
Abstract: The alpha5 subunit of the GABA(A) receptor is localized mainly to the hippocampus of the mammalian brain. The significance of this rather distinct localization and the function of alpha5-containing GABA(A) receptors has been explored by targeted disruption of the alpha5 gene in mice. The alpha5 -/- mice showed a significantly improved performance in a water maze model of spatial learning, whereas the performance in non-hippocampal-dependent learning and in anxiety tasks were unaltered in comparison with wild-type controls. In the CA1 region of hippocampal brain slices from alpha5 -/- mice, the amplitude of the IPSCs was decreased, and paired-pulse facilitation of field EPSP (fEPSP) amplitudes was enhanced. These data suggest that alpha5-containing GABA(A) receptors play a key role in cognitive processes by controlling a component of synaptic transmission in the CA1 region of the hippocampus.
Source: Journal of Neuroscience
Institution: MSD (UK) Limited (United Kingdom)
Language: English
Subfield: Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2165223719