Acetylcholine Acts through Nicotinic Receptors to Enhance the Firing Rate of a Subset of Hypocretin Neurons in the Mouse Hypothalamus through Distinct Presynaptic and Postsynaptic Mechanisms

Abstract

Hypocretin/orexin neurons regulate many behavioral functions, including addiction. Nicotine acts through nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) to alter firing rate of neurons throughout the brain, leading to addiction-related behaviors. While nAChRs are expressed in the hypothalamus and cholinergic fibers project to this structure, it is unclear how acetylcholine modulates the activity of hypocretin neurons. In this study, we stimulated hypocretin neurons in mouse brain slices with ACh in the presence of atropine to dissect presynaptic and postsynaptic modulation of these neurons through nAChRs. Approximately one-third of tested hypocretin neurons responded to pressure application of ACh (1 mM) with an increase in firing frequency. Stimulation of postsynaptic nAChRs with ACh or nicotine resulted in a highly variable inward current in approximately one-third of hypocretin neurons. In contrast, ACh or nicotine (1 µM) reliably decreased the frequency of miniature EPSCs (mEPSCs). Antagonism of nAChRs with mecamylamine also suppressed mEPSC frequency, suggesting that an endogenous, tonic activation of presynaptic nAChRs might be required for maintaining functional mEPSC frequency. Antagonism of heteromeric (α4β2) or homomeric (α7) nAChRs alone suppressed mEPSCs to a lesser extent. Finally, blocking internal calcium release reduced the frequency of mEPSCs, occluding the suppressive effect of presynaptic ACh. Taken together, these data provide a mechanism by which phasic ACh release enhances the firing of a subset of hypocretin neurons through postsynaptic nAChRs, but disrupts tonic, presynaptic nAChR-mediated glutamatergic inputs to the overall population of hypocretin neurons, potentially enhancing the signal-to-noise ratio during the response of the nAChR-positive subset of neurons.