Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, SUNY at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA.
Biomedical Pioneering Innovation Center, Peking University, 100871, Beijing, China.
Nat Commun. 2019 Jul 25;10(1):3324. doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-11206-9.
The process of circuit integration of newly-generated dentate granule cells of the hippocampus has been presumed to be a dynamic process. In fact, little is known regarding the initial development of newly generated neurons prior to circuit integration and the significance of this stage for circuit integration. Here, using advanced live imaging methods, we systematically analyze the dynamic dispersion of newly generated neurons in the neurogenic zone and observe that cells that are physically adjacent coordinate their lateral dispersion. Whole-cell recordings of adjacent newly generated neurons reveal that they are coupled via gap junctions. The dispersion of newly generated cells in the neurogenic zone is restricted when this coupling is disrupted, which severely impairs their subsequent integration into the hippocampal circuit. The results of this study reveal that the dynamic dispersion of newly generated dentate granule cells in the neurogenic zone is a required developmental stage for circuit integration.
海马体中新生成的颗粒细胞的电路整合过程被认为是一个动态过程。事实上，在电路整合之前，对于新生成神经元的初始发育以及该阶段对电路整合的意义知之甚少。在这里，我们使用先进的活体成像方法，系统地分析了神经发生区中新生成神经元的动态扩散，并观察到物理上相邻的细胞协调它们的侧向扩散。对相邻新生成神经元的全细胞膜片钳记录显示，它们通过缝隙连接耦联。当这种耦合被破坏时，神经发生区中新生成细胞的扩散受到限制，这严重损害了它们随后整合到海马电路中的能力。这项研究的结果表明，神经发生区中新生成的颗粒细胞的动态扩散是电路整合的一个必要的发育阶段。
