Postnatal experience modulates functional properties of mouse olfactory sensory neurons

Jiwei He, Huikai Tian, Anderson C. Lee, Minghong Ma
2012 European Journal of Neuroscience  
Early experience considerably modulates the organization and function of all sensory systems. In the mammalian olfactory system, deprivation of the sensory inputs via neonatal, unilateral naris closure has been shown to induce structural, molecular, and functional changes from the olfactory epithelium to the olfactory bulb and cortex. However, it remains unknown how early experience shapes functional properties of individual olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs), the primary odor detectors in the
more » ... e. To address this question, we examined odorant response properties of mouse OSNs in both the closed and open nostril after four weeks of unilateral naris closure with agematched untreated animals as control. Using patch-clamp technique on genetically-tagged OSNs with defined odorant receptors (ORs), we found that sensory deprivation increased the sensitivity of MOR23 neurons in the closed side while overexposure caused the opposite effect in the open side. We next analyzed the response properties including rise time, decay time, and adaptation induced by repeated stimulation in MOR23 and M71 neurons. Even though these two types of neurons showed distinct properties in dynamic range and response kinetics, sensory deprivation significantly slowed down the decay phase of odorant-induced transduction events in both types. Using western blotting and antibody staining, we confirmed upregulation of several signaling proteins in the closed side as compared with the open side. This study suggests that early experience modulates functional properties of OSNs, probably via modifying the signal transduction cascade.
doi:10.1111/j.1460-9568.2012.08170.x pmid:22703547 pmcid:PMC3424323 fatcat:odu7lbca25c2ffukzhtdh45kqi