Effect of electrical stimulation of sciatic nerve on synaptic plasticity of spinal dorsal horn and spinal c-fos expression in neonatal, juvenile and adult rats

Brain Res. 2012 Apr 11:1448:11-9. doi: 10.1016/j.brainres.2012.02.002. Epub 2012 Feb 13.

Abstract

To explore the response to nociceptive stimuli in spinal cord of immature rat and observe the electrical stimulation of the sciatic nerve on synaptic plasticity of the spinal dorsal horn and spinal c-fos expression in rats of different ages, MK-801 was added to the spinal cord of rats, and the resulting changes in field potential as well as c-fos expression were recorded. LTP in neonatal rats was mainly evoked by A-type nerve fibers, whereas LTP in juvenile and adult rats was mainly evoked by C-type nerve fibers. C-fos expression was significantly increased in the superficial and deep layers of the spinal dorsal horn and in the ventral horn in neonatal rats indicating that the pain signal changed with age.

MeSH terms

  • Aging / physiology*
  • Animals
  • Animals, Newborn
  • Dizocilpine Maleate / pharmacology
  • Electric Stimulation
  • Electrophysiological Phenomena
  • Evoked Potentials / physiology
  • Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / pharmacology
  • Genes, fos / genetics*
  • Immunohistochemistry
  • Long-Term Potentiation / drug effects
  • Male
  • Nerve Fibers / drug effects
  • Nerve Fibers, Myelinated / physiology
  • Nerve Fibers, Unmyelinated / physiology
  • Neuronal Plasticity / drug effects
  • Neuronal Plasticity / physiology*
  • Patch-Clamp Techniques
  • Posterior Horn Cells / drug effects
  • Posterior Horn Cells / physiology*
  • Rats
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley
  • Sciatic Nerve / drug effects
  • Sciatic Nerve / growth & development
  • Sciatic Nerve / physiology*
  • Synapses / drug effects
  • Synapses / physiology*

Substances

  • Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists
  • Dizocilpine Maleate