Relaxation of synaptic inhibitory events as a compensatory mechanism in fetal SOD spinal motor networks

Abstract

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease affecting motor neurons (MNs) during late adulthood. Here, with the aim of identifying early changes underpinning ALS neurodegeneration, we analyzed the GABAergic/glycinergic inputs to E17.5 fetal MNs from SOD1^G93A (SOD) mice in parallel with chloride homeostasis. Our results show that IPSCs are less frequent in SOD animals in accordance with a reduction of synaptic VIAAT-positive terminals. SOD MNs exhibited an E_GABAAR10 mV more depolarized than in WT MNs associated with a KCC2 reduction. Interestingly, SOD GABAergic/glycinergic IPSCs and evoked GABA_AR-currents exhibited a slower decay correlated to elevated [Cl^-]_i. Computer simulations revealed that a slower relaxation of synaptic inhibitory events acts as compensatory mechanism to strengthen GABA/glycine inhibition when E_GABAAR is more depolarized. How such mechanisms evolve during pathophysiological processes remain to be determined, but our data indicate that at least SOD1 familial ALS may be considered as a neurodevelopmental disease.