Occlusion of activity dependent synaptic plasticity by late hypoxic long term potentiation after neonatal intermittent hypoxia.

To elucidate the mechanisms of memory impairment after chronic neonatal intermittent hypoxia (IH), we employed a mice model of severe IH administered at postnatal days 3 to 7. Since prior studies in this model did not demonstrate increased cell death, our primary hypothesis was that IH causes a functional disruption of synaptic plasticity in hippocampal neurons. In vivo recordings of Schaffer collateral stimulation-induced synaptic responses during and after IH in the CA1 region of the hippocampus revealed pathological late phase hypoxic long term potentiation (hLTP) (154%) that lasted more than four hours and could be reversed by depotentiation with low frequency stimulation (LFS), or abolished by NMDA and PKA inhibitors (MK-801 and CMIQ). Furthermore, late phase hLTP partially occluded normal physiological LTP (pLTP) four hours after IH. Early and late hLTP phases were induced by neuronal depolarization and Ca2+ influx, determined with manganese enhanced fMRI, and had increased both AMPA and NMDA - mediated currents. This was consistent with mechanisms of pLTP in neonates and also consistent with mechanisms of ischemic LTP described in vitro with OGD in adults. A decrease of pLTP was also recorded on hippocampal slices obtained 2 days after IH. This decrease was ameliorated by MK-801 injections prior to each IH session and restored by LFS depotentiation. Occlusion of pLTP and the observed decreased proportion of NMDA-only silent synapses after neonatal hLTP may explain long term memory, behavioral deficits and abnormal synaptogenesis and pruning following neonatal IH.