The β2V287L nicotinic subunit linked to sleep-related epilepsy differently affects fast-spiking and regular spiking somatostatin-expressing neurons in murine prefrontal cortex

Mutant subunits of the neuronal nicotinic ACh receptor (nAChR) can cause Autosomal Dominant Sleep-related Hypermotor Epilepsy (ADSHE), characterized by frontal seizures during non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. We studied the cellular bases of the pathogenesis in brain slices from mice conditionally expressing the ADSHE-linked β2V287L nAChR subunit. β2V287L mice displayed minor structural alterations, except for a ~10% decrease of prefrontal cortex thickness. However, they showed a substantial decrease of the excitatory input to layer V fast-spiking (FS) interneurons, despite a concomitant increase in the number of glutamatergic terminals around the cell soma. Hence, prefrontal hyperexcitability may depend on a permanent impairment of surround inhibition. The effect disappeared when β2V287L was silenced until postnatal day 15th, suggesting that the transgene selectively affects the maturation of glutamatergic synapses on FS neurons. The other main population of interneurons in layer V was constituted by somatostatin-expressing regular spiking cells. When tested with 10 µM nicotine, these displayed larger somatic nicotinic currents in transgenic mice. Thus, during wakefulness, activation of β2V287L-containing nAChRs by the high cholinergic tone may counteract hyperexcitability by promoting local inhibition by somatostatin-expressing cells and decreasing the effect of glutamatergic deficit in FS neurons. This interpretation was tested in networks disinhibited by 2 μM bicuculline. Slices expressing β2V287L were more susceptible to develop synchronized activity in the absence of nicotine. Addition of the drug boosted excitability in the controls, but had little effect in β2V287L. Our findings suggest why NREM sleep favors ADSHE seizures and nicotine can be palliative in patients.