Fig. 1

Hyperexcitability of pyramidal neurons in the PFC slices of Shank3 heterozygous mutant dogs. A Schematic illustrating the preparation of neocortex slices and electrophysiological recording. B A representative image of a recorded layer 2/3 pyramidal neuron in fresh PFC brain slices. Scale bar, 10 μm. C Representative spiking pattern of pyramidal neurons in response to − 50 pA, 0 pA, and + 200 pA current injections. D–G Compared with WT controls, PFC pyramidal neurons from Shank3 mutant dogs displayed D a left-shifted current-response curve (WT: n = 27 neurons, Shank3 mutant: n = 20 neurons; p = 0.0325), E decreased rheobase (WT: n = 21 neurons, Shank3 mutant: n = 21 neurons; p = 0.0437), and no change in F resting membrane potential (WT: n = 19 neurons, Shank3 mutant: n = 21 neurons; p = 0.9359) and G capacitance (WT: n = 22 neurons, Shank3 mutant: n = 22 neurons; p = 0.9371). Data in E–G were analyzed with a two-tailed, unpaired t test. Data in D were analyzed with two-way repeated measure ANOVA. All data were collected from 3 pairs of animals, and presented as mean ± SEM; *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01 and ***p < 0.001