Long-term potentiation of the AMPA and NMDA components of minimal postsynaptic currents in rat hippocampal field Ca1.

The aim of the present work was to study the potentiation of the AMPA and NMDA components of minimal excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSC) evoked by activation of restricted numbers of synapses. EPSC of neurons in field CA1 in hippocampal slices were recorded in whole-call patch-clamp conditions selected such that both (AMPA and NMDA) components were present, and these were measured in parallel using computational methods in combination with pharmacological receptor blockade. There was a quite strong correlation between the amplitudes of the AMPA and NMDA components and this was regarded as evidence that they were generated by the same synapses. In cases producing this correlation, both components showed essentially equal long-term potentiation lasting from 5 min to 2 h after afferent tetanization. The data did not support the postsynaptic hypothesis and were in better agreement with the concept that the major mechanism for the persistence of the initial phase of long-term potentiation (up to 1-2 h) is based on increases in the quantity of transmitter released presynaptically.