Abstract
Sensory information processing is a fundamental operation in the brain that is based on dynamic interactions between different neuronal populations. Astrocytes, a type of glial cells, have been proposed to represent active elements of brain microcircuits that, through dynamic interactions with neurons, provide a modulatory control of neuronal network activity. Specifically, astrocytes in different brain regions have been described to respond to neuronal signals with intracellular Ca2+ elevations that represent a key step in the functional recruitment of astrocytes to specific brain circuits. Accumulating evidence shows that Ca2+ elevations regulate the release of gliotransmitters that, in turn, modulate synaptic transmission and neuronal excitability. Recent studies also provided new insights into the spatial and temporal features of astrocytic Ca2+ elevations revealing a surprising complexity of Ca2+ signal dynamics in astrocytes. Here we discuss how recently developed experimental tools such as the genetically encoded Ca2+ indicators (GECI), optogenetics and chemogenetics can be applied to the study of astrocytic Ca2+ signals in the living brain.
Highlights
Brain function is based on complex networks composed of different, highly interacting cell populations
An interesting method would be the application to astrocytes of computational methods developed to segment recordings from large neuronal fields of view into independent regions of interest (ROIs)
The genetically encoded Ca2+ indicators (GECI) have overcome most of these limitations and represent an alternative tool for studying in vivo astrocyte physiology
Summary
Brain function is based on complex networks composed of different, highly interacting cell populations. The activity of principal projecting neurons is locally regulated by different classes of interneurons (Markram et al, 2004; Ascoli et al, 2008; Isaacson and Scanziani, 2011) as well as by the glial cells astrocytes These non-neuronal cells constantly interact with neurons and exert functions beyond their classical role in brain tissue homeostasis. Gliotransmitter release occurs through mechanisms that are only partially identified, and it is regulated by intracellular Ca2+ oscillations induced by different neurotransmitters (Zorec et al, 2012; Sahlender et al, 2014; Bazargani and Attwell, 2016) These Ca2+ changes represent a key step in functional neuron-astrocyte interactions. We summarize the innovative techniques to study neuronastrocyte interactive networks in vivo, describe advantages and limitations and discuss possible future developments in this field
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