SummaryLysosomes have traditionally been viewed as degradative organelles, although a growing body of evidence suggests that they can function as Ca2+ stores. Here we examined the function of these stores in hippocampal pyramidal neurons. We found that back-propagating action potentials (bpAPs) could elicit Ca2+ release from lysosomes in the dendrites. This Ca2+ release triggered the fusion of lysosomes with the plasma membrane, resulting in the release of Cathepsin B. Cathepsin B increased the activity of matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9), an enzyme involved in extracellular matrix (ECM) remodelling and synaptic plasticity. Inhibition of either lysosomal Ca2+ signaling or Cathepsin B release prevented the maintenance of dendritic spine growth induced by Hebbian activity. This impairment could be rescued by exogenous application of active MMP-9. Our findings suggest that activity-dependent exocytosis of Cathepsin B from lysosomes regulates the long-term structural plasticity of dendritic spines by triggering MMP-9 activation and ECM remodelling.

Almost since the discovery of long-term potentiation (LTP) in the hippocampus, its locus of expression has been debated. Throughout the years, convincing evidence has accumulated to suggest that LTP can be supported either presynaptically, by an increase in transmitter release, or postsynaptically, by an increase in α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptor number. However, whereas postsynaptic enhancement appears to be consistently obtained across studies following LTP induction, presynaptic enhancement is not as reliably observed. Such discrepancies, along with the failure to convincingly identify a retrograde messenger required for presynaptic change, have led to the general view that LTP is mainly supported postsynaptically, and certainly, research within the field for the past decade has been heavily focused on the postsynaptic locus. Here, we argue that LTP can be expressed at either synaptic locus, but that pre- and postsynaptic forms of LTP are dissociable phenomena mediated by distinct mechanistic processes, which are sensitive to different patterns of neuronal activity. This view of LTP helps to reconcile discrepancies across the literature and may put to rest a decades-long debate.

Achieving intravital optical imaging with diffraction-limited spatial resolution of deep-brain structures represents an important step toward the goal of understanding the mammalian central nervous system1–4. Advances in wavefront-shaping methods and computational power have recently allowed for a novel approach to high-resolution imaging, utilizing deterministic light propagation through optically complex media and, of particular importance for this work, multimode optical fibers (MMFs)5–7. We report a compact and highly optimized approach for minimally invasive in vivo brain imaging applications. The volume of tissue lesion was reduced by more than 100-fold, while preserving diffraction-limited imaging performance utilizing wavefront control of light propagation through a single 50-μm-core MMF. Here, we demonstrated high-resolution fluorescence imaging of subcellular neuronal structures, dendrites and synaptic specializations, in deep-brain regions of living mice, as well as monitored stimulus-driven functional Ca2+ responses. These results represent a major breakthrough in the compromise between high-resolution imaging and tissue damage, heralding new possibilities for deep-brain imaging in vivo.

Hebbian plasticity is thought to require glutamate signalling. We show this is not the case for hippocampal presynaptic long-term potentiation (LTPpre), which is expressed as an increase in transmitter release probability (Pr). We find that LTPpre can be induced by pairing pre- and postsynaptic spiking in the absence of glutamate signalling. LTPpre induction involves a non-canonical mechanism of retrograde nitric oxide signalling, which is triggered by Ca2+ influx from L-type voltage-gated Ca2+ channels, not postsynaptic NMDA receptors (NMDARs), and does not require glutamate release. When glutamate release occurs, it decreases Pr by activating presynaptic NMDARs, and promotes presynaptic long-term depression. Net changes in Pr, therefore, depend on two opposing factors: (1) Hebbian activity, which increases Pr, and (2) glutamate release, which decreases Pr. Accordingly, release failures during Hebbian activity promote LTPpre induction. Our findings reveal a novel framework of presynaptic plasticity that radically differs from traditional models of postsynaptic plasticity.