Experience-dependent plasticity of cortical inhibition

This PhD study looks at the role of inhibition in plasticity in primary visual cortex (V1) during ageing. In particular, it examines the dynamics of inhibitory synapses during monocular deprivation (MD) on layer 2/3 pyramidal cells using a cytoplasmic marker and a GFP fusion protein with gephyrin a so-called scaffold protein that anchors inhibitory synapses to dendritic shafts or spines (gemmula), expressed using in utero electroporation. These structures are studied in vivo with two-photon microscopy through a coverslip placed over V1 of mice. The effects of MD on inhibitory synapses are compared between young adult and older (middle-aged) animals. This form of plasticity in V1 is normally absent but can be restored through expression of the enzyme chondroitinase ABC (chABC) that degrades perineuronal nets.