Metabolism Regulates the Spontaneous Firing of Substantia Nigra Pars Reticulata Neurons via K_ATPand Nonselective Cation Channels

Neurons use glucose to fuel glycolysis and provide substrates for mitochondrial respiration, but neurons can also use alternative fuels that bypass glycolysis and feed directly into mitochondria. To determine whether neuronal pacemaking depends on active glucose metabolism, we switched the metabolic fuel from glucose to alternative fuels, lactate or β-hydroxybutyrate, while monitoring the spontaneous firing of GABAergic neurons in mouse...