Two forms of long-term depression in a polysynaptic pathway in the leech CNS: one NMDA receptor-dependent and the other cannabinoid-dependent.

Although long-term depression (LTD) is a well-studied form of synaptic plasticity, it is clear that multiple cellular mechanisms are involved in its induction. In the leech, LTD is observed in a polysynaptic connection between touch mechanosensory neurons (T cells) and the S interneuron following low frequency stimulation. LTD elicited by 450 s low frequency stimulation was blocked by N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor antagonists. However, LTD elicited by 900 s low frequency stimulation was insensitive to NMDA receptor antagonists and was instead dependent on cannabinoid signaling. This LTD was blocked by both a cannabinoid receptor antagonist and by inhibition of diacylglycerol lipase, which is necessary for the synthesis of the cannabinoid transmitter 2-arachidonyl glycerol (2-AG). Bath application of 2-AG or the cannabinoid receptor agonist CP55 940 also induced LTD at this synapse. These results indicate that two forms of LTD coexist at the leech T-to-S polysynaptic pathway: one that is NMDA receptor-dependent and another that is cannabinoid-dependent and that activation of either form of LTD is dependent on the level of activity in this circuit.