Synaptic release of serotonin induced by stimulation of the raphe nucleus promotes plateau potentials in spinal motoneurons of the adult turtle.

Serotonin (5-HT) is a major modulator of the CNS. In motoneurons recorded in slices of the spinal cord, 5-HT promotes plateau potentials mediated by the activity of low-threshold L-type calcium channels (CaV1.3). However, no direct evidence has shown that 5-HT actually promotes plateau potentials under physiological conditions. Here, we investigate how release of 5-HT induced by activation of the raphe nucleus modulates intrinsic properties of spinal motoneurons. We developed an integrated preparation of the brainstem left in continuity with the cervical segments of the spinal cord from adult turtles. Electrical stimulation of the raphe nucleus increased the excitability of motoneurons by decreasing the amplitude of the afterhyperpolarization following action potentials and by promoting plateau potentials. Antagonists of 5-HT2 receptors applied in the vicinity of motoneurons inhibited the facilitation of plateaus. In a slice preparation in which glutamatergic, GABAergic, and glycinergic ionotropic synaptic transmission was blocked, stimulation of the dorsolateral funiculus facilitated a plateau potential by promoting a voltage-sensitive persistent inward current. This effect was inhibited by the addition of antagonists for 5-HT2 receptors. Our study suggests that CaV1.3 channels are regulated by 5-HT released from raphe spinal synaptic terminals via 5-HT2 receptors.