PKA drives an increase in AMPA receptor unitary conductance during LTP in the hippocampus

Long-term potentiation (LTP) at hippocampal CA1 synapses can be expressed by an increase either in the number (N) of AMPA (α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole propionic acid) receptors or in their single channel conductance (γ). Here we have established how these distinct synaptic processes contribute to the expression of LTP in hippocampal slices obtained from young adult rodents. LTP induced by compressed theta burst stimulation (TBS), with a 10 s inter-episode interval, involved purely an increase in N (LTPN). In contrast, either a spaced TBS, with a 10 min inter-episode interval, or a single TBS, delivered when PKA was activated, resulted in LTP that was associated with a transient increase in γ (LTPγ). This γ increase was due to the insertion of calcium-permeable (CP)-AMPA receptors. Activation of CaMKII was necessary and sufficient for LTPN whilst PKA was additionally required for LTPγ. Thus, two mechanistically distinct forms of LTP co-exist at these synapses.