EFFECTS OF DEPRIVATION OF OXYGEN OR GLUCOSE ON THE NEURAL ACTIVITY IN THE GUINEA-PIG HIPPOCAMPAL SLICE - INTRACELLULAR-RECORDING STUDY OF PYRAMIDAL NEURONS

The block of synaptic transmission and neural activity during deprivation of oxgen or glucose has been simply attributed to the lack of energy due to the disorder of energy production. To clarify the interrelation between neural activity and energy metabolism during hypoxia or glucose deprivation, we studied the changes in ATP levels and electrical events of pyramidal neurons in the CA3 region and [Ca2+]i mobilization of the dendritic and cellular region of CA3 area, using guinea pig hippocampal slices. The studies of field potentials and intracellular recording from the pyramidal cell of CA3 area during hypoxia or glucose deprivation revealed that the cessation of synaptic activity and the depolarization of resting potential occurred earlier during hypoxia than during glucose deprivation while the increase of [Ca2+]i was slow during hypoxia but rapid during glucose deprivation although the ATP level of CA3 area was maintained at its original level for 20 min during both conditions. When glucose was replaced by lactate, ATP concentration was not reduced but the electrical activity decayed and [Ca2+]i increased with the similar time course as observed during lack of glucose, only. These results suggest that different mechanisms underlie the block of synaptic transmission in the CA3 pyramidal neurons during hypoxia and glucose deprivation and that lactate cannot substitute for glucose in the maintenance of neural activity.