Release of cerebellar inhibition by climbing fiber deafferentation

Cerebellar units were recorded extracellularly in rats before and after an intraveinous injection of 3-acetylpyridine destroying selectively the IO. All the Purkinje cells show a loss of the complex discharge between 2 h 15 min and 2 h 45 min after treatment. This time, called the “critical period” corresponds to the degeneration of the neurons of the inferior olive as revealed by the decrease of their metabolic activity. The simple spikes of the Purkinje cells increase their discharge frequency soon after the climbing fibers cease firing. On the contrary the firing frequency of the inhibitory interneurons does not show significant changes after degeneration of the inferior olive. The efferent cerebellar neurons, including cells of the cerebellar and vestibular nuclei receiving the axon terminals of the Purkinje cells, decrease their discharge rate up to thirty times during and after the critical period. It is demonstrated that this effect is due to the increased inhibitory activity of the Purkinje cells deafferented from the climbing fibers, whereas the deafferentation of the efferent cerebellar neurones from the collaterals of the olivary cells has little impact.