Development of Inhibitory Transmission in Central Circuits

Central vagal neurons receive both glycinergic and GABAergic inhibitory inputs at early postnatal timepoints, but adult vagal efferent motoneurons receive only inhibitory GABAergic synaptic inputs. This surely points to the loss of glycinergic inhibitory neurotransmission during postnatal development. But when exactly? Given the prominent role that GABAergic synaptic inputs play in regulating the excitability of vagal efferent motoneurons, this is an important question when considering the potential for developmental dysregulation of inhibitory synapse maturation. In this podcast, Editor-in-Chief Bill Yates (University of Pittsburgh) and content expert David Mendelowitz (George Washington University) talk with authors Caitlin Alannah McMenamin and Kirsteen Browning, both from Penn State College of Medicine, about their efforts to determine the critical timepoints and contributions of GABAergic versus glycinergic transmission to neurons of the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMV). Is this developmental transition from glycinergic to GABAergic neurotransmission unique to DMV neurons? What might the clinical significance of this change in inhibitory neurotransmission be? Listen and find out.

Developmental regulation of inhibitory synaptic currents in the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus in the rat
Caitlin Alannah McMenamin, Laura Anselmi, R. Alberto Travagli, Kirsteen N. Browning
Journal of Neurophysiology, published online July 20, 2016. DOI: 10.1152/jn.00249.2016 .