PATCH-CLAMP ANALYSIS OF SYNAPTIC TRANSMISSION TO CEREBELLAR PURKINJE-CELLS OF PRION PROTEIN KNOCKOUT MICE

The prion protein (PrP) plays a pivotal role in transmissible spongifo rm encephalopathies such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans and sc rapie and bovine spongiform encephalopathy in animals, Previous experi ments have suggested that the normal cellular prion protein (PrPC) is involved in synaptic function in the hippocampus. Here, we utilized th e controlled recording conditions of the patch-clamp technique to inve stigate the synaptic function of prion protein in cerebellar Purkinje cells. By performing whole-cell and outside-out patch-clamp experiment s in thin slices, we investigated synaptic transmission in prion prote in knockout mice (PrP-null) and control animals, In PrP-null mice, the kinetics of GABA- and glutamate receptor-mediated currents showed no significant deviation from those in control animals, In contrast to pr evious results in hippocampal neurons, our findings support the view t hat synaptic transmission is unimpaired in prion protein-deficient mic e.