Membrane potentials and currents of isolated sheep Purkinje and ventricular cells were compared using patch-clamp and microelectrode techniques. In ∼50% of Purkinje cells, we observed action potentials that showed a prominent phase 1 repolarization and relatively negative plateau (LP cells). Action potential configuration of the remaining Purkinje cells was characterized by little phase 1 repol...

A single olivocerebellar fiber branches off several climbing fibers. One Purkinje cell receives input from only one climbing fiber. A single inferior olivary neuron, therefore, synapses with several Purkinje cells, so that there are more Purkinje cells than the inferior olivary neurons. We aimed to elucidate the numerical ratio of the inferior olivary neurons to Purkinje cells in the chicken. T...

Granule cell precursors in the external germinal layer (EGL) of the cerebellum have been proposed to be a major player in the migration and positioning of Purkinje cells through the expression of the Netrin-like receptor Unc5h3 and the extracellular matrix molecule Reelin. To explore the role of the EGL on these processes, we made use of the math1 null-mutant mouse in which the EGL does not for...

Dendrite arborization patterns are critical determinants of neuronal connectivity and integration. Planar and highly branched dendrites of the cerebellar Purkinje cell receive specific topographical projections from two major afferent pathways; a single climbing fiber axon from the inferior olive that extend along Purkinje dendrites, and parallel fiber axons of granule cells that contact vertic...

The contribution of neuronal dysfunction to neurodegeneration is studied in a mouse model of spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1) displaying impaired motor performance ahead of loss or atrophy of cerebellar Purkinje cells. Presymptomatic SCA1 mice show a reduction in the firing rate of Purkinje cells (both in vivo and in slices) associated with a reduction in the efficiency of the main glutamat...

Zhou H, Voges K, Lin Z, Ju C, Schonewille M. Differential Purkinje cell simple spike activity and pausing behavior related to cerebellar modules. J Neurophysiol 113: 2524–2536, 2015. First published February 25, 2015; doi:10.1152/jn.00925.2014.—The massive computational capacity of the cerebellar cortex is conveyed by Purkinje cells onto cerebellar and vestibular nuclei neurons through their GA...

The development of cerebellar Purkinje cells is subject to regulation by multiple epigenetic signals. To define mechanisms by which trophic and presynaptic stimulation may potentially regulate Purkinje cell ontogeny, we studied the effects of NGF and excitatory transmitters on Purkinje cell survival and morphological maturation in dissociated cell culture. Purkinje cells were identified by expr...

Developmental shift in GABA actions from depolarization to hyperpolarization occurs as a result of decreasing the intracellular Cl(-) concentration regulated by K(+)-Cl(-) co-transporter 2 (KCC2). To clarify the time-course of the developmental shift on the Purkinje cells, we examined KCC2-localization in the embryonic mouse cerebellum. The KCC2 was first detected within the Purkinje cells in t...

It remains a challenge to differentiate human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) or embryonic stem (ES) cells to Purkinje cells. In this study, we derived iPSCs from human fibroblasts and directed the specification of iPSCs first to Purkinje progenitors, by adding Fgf2 and insulin to the embryoid bodies (EBs) in a time-sensitive manner, which activates the endogenous production of Wnt1 and ...

Cover Illustration: Confocal image of a cerebellar slice depleted its endogenous oligodendrocytes and transplanted with OPCs (oligodendrocyte precursor cells). Exogenous effectively differentiate form myelin sheaths (MBP+, rainbow pseudo-color) around Purkinje cell axons (CaBP+, grey) after 3 days co-culture. (See Bouslama-Oueghlani, L., et al, https://doi.org/10.1002/glia.24001.)