PURPOSE: To investigate the mechanism of the termination of ocular dominance column plasticity by electrophysiologic analysis and 2-dimensional electrophoresis-mass spectrography (2-DE/MS).METHODS: The changes in ocular dominance columns following monocular deprivation were electrophysiologically detected in 22-day-old, 100-day-old and chondroitinase-perfused 100-day-old rats. Total protein of grey matter of the primary visual cortex was extracted and studied by 2-DE/MS from the three groups of rats.RESULTS: Monocular deprivation may lead to shifts in ocular dominance columns in 22-day-old and chondroitinase-perfused 100-day-old rats, but not in 100-day-old rats. Four protein spots present in grey matter of the primary visual cortex in 100-day-old, but not in that of 22-day-old and chondroitinase-perfused rats, and mass spectrography identified two of these proteins.CONCLUSIONS: The electrophysiologic results show that ocular dominance column plasticity presents in 22-day-old rats, ends up in 100-day-old rats and restored in chondroitinase-perfused 100-day-old rats. 2-DE/MS results show that phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein and glial fibrillary acidic protein delta may be associated with the termination of ocular dominance column plasticity in the rat, but need more evidence to confirm it.
Animals Dominance, Ocular