Abstract
Astrocytes - a prominent glial cell type in the brain - form networks that tightly interact with the brain's neuronal circuits. Thus, it is essential to study the modes of such interaction if we aim to understand how neural circuits process information. Thereby, calcium elevations, the primary signal in astrocytes, propagate to the adjacent neighboring cells and directly regulate neuronal communication. It is mostly unknown how the astrocyte network topology influences neuronal activity. Here, we used a computational model to simulate planar and 3D neuron-astrocyte networks with varying topologies. We investigated the number of active nodes, the shortest path, and the mean degree. Furthermore, we applied a graph coloring analysis that highlights the network organization between different network structures. With the increase of the maximum distance between two connected astrocytes, the information flow is more centralized to the most connected cells. Our results suggest that activity-dependent plasticity and the topology of brain areas might alter the amount of astrocyte controlled synapses.
Highlights
T HE PROPAGATION of information inside the brain is historically considered to be based on the communication between neurons
In 3D networks, Vogel [21] measured similar neuron projections ranging from 80 to 120 μm as we simulated in this study
When shifting from planar to 3D networks, she observed an increase of spontaneous neuronal activity [21]
Summary
T HE PROPAGATION of information inside the brain is historically considered to be based on the communication between neurons. Recent experimental studies show that astrocytes actively modulate neuronal activity. They are tightly linked to neurons via the so-called tripartite synapse [1] forming the neuron-astrocyte molecular communication system. The primary signaling mediator evoked by the synaptic communication in astrocytes is calcium [2]–[4]. Calcium propagates inside the complex astrocytic branch trees and from cell to cell through gap junction coupling (GJC) [3], [5]. Thereby, astrocytes form non-overlapping domains coupled only to the nearest neighbors [6].
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