Effects of sensory deprivation on columnar organization of neuronal circuits in the rat barrel cortex.

We examined whether sensory deprivation during formation of the cortical circuitry influences the pattern of intracortical single-cell connections in rat barrel cortex. Excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) from layer 2/3 (L2/3) pyramidal neurons were recorded in vitro using patch-clamp techniques. In order to evoke EPSPs, presynaptic neurons were stimulated by photolytically applied glutamate, thus generating action potentials. Synaptic connections between the stimulated and the recorded neuron were identified by the occurrence of PSPs following photostimulation. Sensory deprivation changed the pattern of projections from L4 and L2/3 neurons to L2/3 pyramidal cells. In slices of non-deprived rats 86% of the total presynaptic neurons were located in the first and only 10% in the second barrel column. Deprivation changed these values to 67% and 26%, respectively. Therefore, the probability of presynaptic cells projecting to L2/3 neurons was shifted from adjacent to more remote barrel columns. These results indicate that deprivation of sensory input influences the pattern of intracortical connections.