The function of voltage-gated chloride channels in neurons is essentially unknown. The voltage-gated chloride channel ClC-2 mediates a chloride current in pyramidal cells of the hippocampus. We directly show that ClC-2 assists chloride extrusion after high chloride load. Furthermore, the loss of this chloride channel leads to a dramatic increase of the input resistance of CA1 pyramidal cells, making these cells more excitable. Surprisingly, basal synaptic transmission, as judged from recordings of field EPSPs, was decreased. This difference was eliminated when GABAergic inhibition was blocked. Recordings from hippocampal interneurons revealed ClC-2-mediated currents in a subset of these cells. An observed increase in GABAergic inhibition could thus be explained by an increase in the excitability of interneurons, caused by the loss of ClC-2. Together, we suggest a dual role for ClC-2 in neurons, providing an additional efflux pathway for chloride and constituting a substantial part of the background conductance, which regulates excitability. In ClC-2 knock-out mice, an increased inhibition seemingly balances the hyperexcitability of the network and thereby prevents epilepsy.

After recanalization, cerebral blood flow (CBF) can increase above baseline in cerebral ischemia. However, the significance of post-ischemic hyperperfusion for tissue recovery remains unclear. To analyze the course of post-ischemic hyperperfusion and its impact on vascular function, we used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with pulsed arterial spin labeling (pASL) and measured CBF quantitatively during and after a 60 minute transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) in adult rats. We added a 5% CO2 - challenge to analyze vasoreactivity in the same animals. Results from MRI were compared to histological correlates of angiogenesis. We found that CBF in the ischemic area recovered within one day and reached values significantly above contralateral thereafter. The extent of hyperperfusion changed over time, which was related to final infarct size: early (day 1) maximal hyperperfusion was associated with smaller lesions, whereas a later (day 4) maximum indicated large lesions. Furthermore, after initial vasoparalysis within the ischemic area, vasoreactivity on day 14 was above baseline in a fraction of animals, along with a higher density of blood vessels in the ischemic border zone. These data provide further evidence that late post-ischemic hyperperfusion is a sequel of ischemic damage in regions that are likely to undergo infarction. However, it is transient and its resolution coincides with re-gaining of vascular structure and function.

Tissue tolerance to ischemia can be achieved by noxious stimuli that are below a threshold to cause irreversible damage ('preconditioning'). Understanding the mechanisms underlying preconditioning may lead to the identification of novel therapeutic targets for diseases such as stroke. We here used the oxidative chain inhibitor 3-nitropropionic acid (NPA) to induce ischemia tolerance in a rat middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) stroke model. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) and structural integrity were characterized by longitudinal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in combination with behavioral, histologic, and biochemical assessment of NPA-preconditioned animals and controls. Using this approach we show that the ischemia-tolerant state is characterized by a lower energy charge potential and lower CBF, indicating a reduced baseline metabolic demand, and therefore a cellular mechanism of neural protection. Blood vessel density and structural integrity were not altered by NPA treatment. When subjected to MCAO, preconditioned animals had a characteristic MRI signature consisting of enhanced CBF maintenance within the ischemic territory and intraischemic reversal of the initial cytotoxic edema, resulting in reduced infarct volumes. Thus, our data show that tissue protection through preconditioning occurs early during ischemia and indicate that a reduced cellular metabolism is associated with tissue tolerance to ischemia.