PCBs reduce long-term potentiation in the CA1 region of rat hippocampus.

Prenatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) has been associated with a lower IQ in childhood. We have examined the effects of acute exposure to PCB mixtures and two single congeners on synaptic transmission between Schaffer collaterals and CA1 neurons of the rat hippocampus as well as posttetanic potentiation (PTP), paired pulse facilitation (PPF), and long-term potentiation (LTP). PTP and PPF represent transient increases in transmitter release immediately after stimulation, while LTP is a measure of long-term changes in synaptic plasticity that has been related to learning and memory. LTP, but neither PTP nor PPF, was reduced by Aroclor 1016 in a dose-dependent fashion at concentrations that had little effect on general synaptic transmission. The more highly chlorinated Aroclor 1254 at low concentrations specifically blocked LTP, but at higher concentrations also reduced synaptic transmission. The mono-ortho PCB congener 2,4,4'-trichlorobiphenyl and the coplanar congener 3,3',4,4'-tetrachlorobiphenyl also blocked LTP without effect on PTP or PPF. We conclude that PCBs selectively impair the process of LTP in CA1 neurons of the hippocampus.