Sex Differences in Electrophysiological Properties of Mouse Medial Preoptic Area Neurons Revealed by In Vitro Whole-cell Recordings / 神经科学通报·英文版

Despite extensive characterization of sex differences in the medial preoptic area (mPOA) of the hypothalamus, we know surprisingly little about whether or how male and female mPOA neurons differ electrophysiologically, especially in terms of neuronal firing and behavioral pattern generation. In this study, by performing whole-cell patch clamp recordings of the mPOA, we investigated the influences of sex, cell type, and gonadal hormones on the electrophysiological properties of mPOA neurons. Notably, we uncovered significant sex differences in input resistance (male > female) and in the percentage of neurons that displayed post-inhibitory rebound (male > female). Furthermore, we found that the current mediated by the T-type Ca