Cited by 180Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology ResearchNeural dynamics and brain functionMemory and Neural Mechanisms

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 34 of the 34 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; none of the 29 sources its claims cite is checked for support yet.

Diversity and Connectivity of Layer 5 Somatostatin-Expressing Interneurons in the Mouse Barrel Cortex

Open access
Nigro, Maximiliano José, Hashikawa-Yamasaki, Yoshiko, Rudy, Bernardo·2018·The Journal of Neuroscience

Abstract

Inhibitory interneurons represent 10–15% of the neurons in the somatosensory cortex, and their activity powerfully shapes sensory processing. Three major groups of GABAergic interneurons have been defined according to developmental, molecular, morphological, electrophysiological, and synaptic features. Dendritic-targeting somatostatin-expressing interneurons (SST-INs) have been shown to display diverse morphological, electrophysiological, and molecular properties and activity patterns in vivo. However, the correlation between these properties and SST-IN subtype is unclear. In this study, we aimed to correlate the morphological diversity of layer 5 (L5) SST-INs with their electrophysiological and molecular diversity in mice of either sex. Our morphological analysis demonstrated the existence of three subtypes of L5 SST-INs with distinct electrophysiological properties: T-shaped Martinotti cells innervate L1, and are low-threshold spiking; fanning-out Martinotti cells innervate L2/3 and the lower half of L1, and show adapting firing patterns; non-Martinotti cells innervate L4, and show a quasi-fast spiking firing pattern. We estimated the proportion of each subtype in L5 and found that T-shaped Martinotti, fanning-out Martinotti, and Non-Martinotti cells represent ∼10, ∼50, and ∼40% of L5 SST-INs, respectively. Last, we examined the connectivity between the three SST-IN subtypes and L5 pyramidal cells (PCs). We found that L5 T-shaped Martinotti cells inhibit the L1 apical tuft of nearby PCs; L5 fanning-out Martinotti cells also inhibit nearby PCs but they target the dendrite mainly in L2/3. On the other hand, non-Martinotti cells inhibit the dendrites of L4 neurons while avoiding L5 PCs. Our data suggest that morphologically distinct SST-INs gate different excitatory inputs in the barrel cortex. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Morphologically diverse layer 5 SST-INs show different patterns of activity in behaving animals. However, little is known about the abundance and connectivity of each morphological type and the correlation between morphological subtype and spiking properties. We demonstrate a correlation between the morphological and electrophysiological diversity of layer 5 SST-INs. Based on these findings we built a classifier to infer the abundance of each morphological subtype. Last, using paired recordings combined with morphological analysis, we investigated the connectivity of each morphological subtype. Our data suggest that, by targeting different cell types and cellular compartments, morphologically diverse SST-INs might gate different excitatory inputs in the mouse barrel cortex.

Overview

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Written from the paper’s full text.

TL;DR

Layer 5 somatostatin-expressing interneurons (SST-INs) in mouse barrel cortex comprise three morphologically distinct subtypes—T-shaped Martinotti, fanning-out Martinotti, and non-Martinotti—with correlated firing patterns and different postsynaptic targets. These subtypes are estimated to make up roughly 10%, 50%, and 40% of L5 SST-INs, respectively, and they connect to distinct dendritic compartments or cell types.

Key findings

  • Morphology correlated with firing pattern: T-shaped Martinotti cells target L1 (50 ± 3% of ascending axonal length and 56 ± 4% of nodes in L1) and show low-threshold spiking with rebound spiking in 7 of 8 cells; fanning-out Martinotti cells target L2/3 (65.8 ± 6% of ascending axon and 71 ± 8% of nodes) and show adapting firing; non-Martinotti cells target L4 (87.6 ± 4% of ascending axon and 92 ± 3% of nodes) and show stuttering in all 8 cells, with fast biphasic AHP in 7 of 8.
  • A linear discriminant classifier estimated that in the SST-cre line, fanning-out Martinotti cells represent 50.8% of L5 SST-INs, T-shaped Martinotti cells 13.8%, and non-Martinotti cells 35.4% (abstract rounds these to ~10%, ~50%, and ~40%). The SST/CR line was enriched for fanning-out Martinotti cells (88.9%), while the SST/Calb line was enriched for T-shaped Martinotti cells (61.5%).
  • Both Martinotti subtypes innervated L5 pyramidal cells with similar probabilities (fanning-out: 53.6%, 9 of 16; T-shaped: 40%, 4 of 10), but their apical dendritic contact distributions differed significantly (p = 0.033): fanning-out synapses were mainly in L2/3, 150–300 µm below the pia, whereas T-shaped contacts showed a bimodal distribution with a peak in L4 (~450 µm below pia) and a second peak in L1/L2-3 border.
  • Non-Martinotti cells did not connect to L5 pyramidal cells (0 of 13) but showed high connection probability with L4 spiny stellate cells (83.3%, 5 of 6), with putative contacts located on dendrites.

Methods

  • Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in acute barrel cortex slices from P20–P40 mice of either sex, using SST-cre, SST/CR, and SST/Calb transgenic lines; biocytin filling followed by confocal reconstruction.
  • Reconstructed 30 SST-INs and analyzed 11 electrophysiological parameters in 29 morphologically identified cells; used principal component analysis, hierarchical clustering, and a linear discriminant classifier to classify 76 additional neurons.
  • Performed dual and triple paired recordings (39 pairs) between L5 SST-INs and nearby L5 pyramidal cells or L4 spiny stellate cells, combined with morphological analysis of putative synaptic contacts.

Limitations

  • Stated: slicing artifacts can affect reconstructions, so the authors applied quality criteria and unsupervised clustering; current molecular markers are insufficient, as SST/CR labels only part of the fanning-out population and SST/Calb labels a heterogeneous population.
  • Evident: sample sizes are small for some subtypes (30 reconstructed cells, 29 electrophysiologically analyzed, 39 paired recordings), and the classifier was trained on 20 of 29 cells and made two errors in a 21-cell control group.
  • Evident: all data come from in vitro slices, so connectivity and firing properties may not fully reflect in vivo activity or circuit behavior.

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Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1523/jneurosci.2415-17.2017

Cites

34 of 34 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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Claims the paper makes

60 Own result · 17 Not checked yet · 9 Own interpretation · 4 Own method · 2 No basis given

Verify all 29 references — free account

Show all 64 claims

  • It may state two separate claims as one. 22
  • Probably not a substantial claim. 8
28 of 28
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The correlation between morphological, electrophysiological, and molecular properties and SST-IN subtype is unclear.

    “However, the correlation between these properties and SST-IN subtype is unclear.”
    “However, the relationship between the morphological and electrophysiological diversity remains poorly understood.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Little is known about the specific postsynaptic partners of different morphological subtypes of L5 SST-INs.

    “However, little is known about the specific postsynaptic partners of different morphological subtypes of L5 SST-INs.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The output connectivity of non-Martinotti cells has not been studied.

    “Moreover, the output connectivity of non-Martinotti cells has not been studied.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    It is unknown whether both types of Martinotti cells are connected to L5 PCs and participate in feedback inhibition.

    “but it is unknown whether both types of Martinotti cells are connected to L5 PCs and participate in this type of inhibition”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The linear discriminant classifier built from firing properties accurately infers the morphological class of L5 SST-INs.

    “We used the firing properties of morphologically identified cells to build a linear discriminant classifier to infer the proportion of cells belonging to each morphological class in L5.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Putative synaptic contacts identified morphologically correspond to functional synapses.

    “We also quantified the putative synaptic contacts in connected pairs.”
    “All the putative contact points between non-Martinotti cells and L4 spiny stellate cells were located on dendrites (Fig. 8C,G).”
6 of 6

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2 of 2

Citations

Cites

Show all 34 references

Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Martinotti, 1889, Contributo allo studio della corteccia cerebrale, ed all'origine centrale dei nervi, Ann Freniatr Sci Affini, 1, 14
  2. Ramon y Cajal, 1891, Sur la structure de l'ecorce cerebrale de quelques mammiferes, Cellule, 7, 3

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Metadata

Authors
Nigro, M. J., Hashikawa-Yamasaki, Y., & Rudy, B.
Affiliations
Neuroscience Institute (IT)
Venue
The Journal of Neuroscience
Published
2018-01-11
Volume
38
Issue
7
Pages
1622-1633
ISSN
  • 0270-6474 (ISSN-L)
  • 1529-2401
OpenAlex
W2782653800
Cited by
149
References
34
Citations by year
2026: 7 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 24 · 2023: 29 · 2022: 23 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 22 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 2
FWCI
5.92
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health (5r01ns030989-22)
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (R01NS107257, R01-NS030989, P01NS074972, R01NS110079, R21NS093987)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural dynamics and brain function
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
Keywords
layer 5, barrel cortex, Martinotti cells, dendritic inhibition, somatosensory cortex
MeSH terms
Animals, Dendrites, Female, Interneurons, Male, Neural Inhibition, Neural Pathways, Neurons, Somatosensory Cortex, Somatostatin, Pyramidal Cells, Mice, Electrophysiological Phenomena, In Vitro Techniques

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