articlesThe building block of synaptic transmission is the quantum, the minimal increment of postsynaptic signals 1 . At vertebrate neuromuscular junctions, the quantum may be equated with spontaneous signals obtained in the absence of presynaptic action potentials, called miniature currents (or potentials) and believed to be due to release of one neurotransmitter vesicle. For central synapses, this issue remains an open question, as large miniature currents are suggested to arise from the concerted release of several presynaptic vesicles and to be the sum of several quanta 2-5 . Such multivesicular miniature events could reflect tetrodotoxinresistant action potentials in presynaptic terminals 6 . Another explanation comes from evidence for functional intracellular Ca 2+ stores in presynaptic terminals. First, inositoltrisphosphate (InsP 3 ) receptors are immunolocalized in presynaptic terminals of the deep cerebellar nuclei and retina 7,8 . Second, at the frog neuromuscular junction, agents that affect ryanodine-sensitive Ca 2+ stores also regulate presynaptic intracellular Ca 2+ (Ca 2+ i ) rises and acetylcholine release during high-frequency stimulation 9,10 . Third, action-potential-evoked release of acetylcholine at synapses in Aplysia buccal ganglia is inhibited by ryanodine and augmented by presynaptic injection of cyclic ADP ribose 11 . Fourth, caffeine and/or ryanodine modify presynaptic Ca 2+ i signals in autonomic ganglia 12,13 and in photoreceptors 14 . Finally, in hippocampal pyramidal cells, caffeine or thapsigargin can increase the frequency of miniature IPSCs 15 . Hence, spontaneous Ca 2+ release from presynaptic Ca 2+ stores may provide the synchronization mechanism that leads to multivesicular miniatures. However, except for one study that gave negative results in cultured retinal amacrine cells 16 , this possibility has not been tested systematically.To assess the contribution of intracellular Ca 2+ stores to neurotransmitter release, we monitored the amplitude distribution of miniature synaptic currents while manipulating potential presynaptic Ca 2+ stores. Using cerebellar interneuron-Purkinje cell synapses, in which large miniature synaptic currents are prominent, we found that the largest mIPSCs result from multivesicular release and depend on Ca 2+ mobilization from ryanodine-sensitive presynaptic stores. Further, two-photon confocal microscopy showed ryanodine-sensitive intracellular Ca 2+ i transients highly localized to presumed release sites, which may underlie large miniature currents. RESULTSMiniature IPSCs recorded in cerebellar Purkinje cells, at -60 mV under symmetrical Cl -concentrations and in the presence of tetrodotoxin (TTX) and ionotropic glutamate receptor blockers, showed mean amplitudes of 125 ± 9 pA (n = 28 cells), larger than for most neurons (Fig. 1a). Amplitude histograms had a distinct peak for values less than 200 pA, followed by a long tail with amplitudes up to 1500 pA (Fig. 1b). Spurious summation of independent events did not contribute to the generation of lar...

SUMMARY1. Isolated cells from rat lacrimal glands were studied with patch-clamp techniques. Whole-cell and cell-attached recordings were obtained while the cells were stimulated by application of carbamylcholine or of the Ca ionophore, A23187. The results were compared with recordings of Ca-dependent channels obtained in isolated patches.2. Whole-cell recordings revealed two types of carbamylcholine-induced current. At low levels of stimulation, a specific class of Ca-dependent K channels was selectively activated ('BK channels'). With more intense stimulation an inward current, Ii, was obtained at the cell resting potential. Ii rose rather abruptly after a long delay. In several cells, Ii currents presented spontaneous oscillations.3

The existence of spontaneous calcium transients (SCaTs) dependent on intracellular store activation has been reported in putative axonal terminals of cerebellar basket interneurons. We used the two-photon imaging technique to optically identify basket terminals in acute cerebellar slices of young rats (11-16 d old) and study the properties of SCaTs unambiguously localized in these regions. The whole-cell recording configuration and preloading technique were alternatively used to load the calcium-dependent dye in the interneuron and compare SCaTs with action potential evoked calcium transients. SCaTs were observed in the basket terminals at frequencies that were significantly increased after bath application of 10 M ryanodine and did not depend on P/Q-or N-type voltage-dependent calcium channel activation. They originated at specific sites where bursts of events with temporal separation as small as 200 msec could be generated. Their sites of origin were spaced on average 6 m apart and were preferentially located near axonal endings. SCaTs had amplitudes comparable with those of Ca 2ϩ rises evoked by single action potentials that lead to release of neurotransmitter, as confirmed by parallel recordings of preloaded terminals and evoked IPSCs in the postsynaptic Purkinje cells. These results support the hypothesis that SCaTs at basket terminals underlie the large miniature IPSCs characteristic of Purkinje cells.

The role of the axonal membrane compartment in synaptic integration is usually neglected. We show here that in interneurons of the cerebellar molecular layer, where dendrites are so short that the somatodendritic domain can be considered isopotential, the axonal membrane contributes a significant part of the cell input capacitance. We examine the impact of axonal membrane on synaptic integration by cutting the axon with two-photon illumination. We find that the axonal compartment acts as a sink for signals generated at fast conductance synapses, thus increasing the initial decay rate of corresponding synaptic potentials over the value predicted from the resistance-capacitance (RC) product of the cell membrane; signals generated at slower synapses are much less affected. This mechanism sharpens the spike firing precision of fast glutamatergic inputs without resorting to multisynaptic pathways.