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| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Astrocytes discriminate and selectively respond to the activity of a subpopulation of neurons within the barrel cortex |
| Creators Name: | Schipke, C.G., Haas, B. and Kettenmann, H. |
| Abstract: | Sensory information from single whiskers in rodents projects to defined morphological units in the cortex, the barrels. We found that astrocytes selectively respond with an increase in the cytosolic Ca(2+) concentration to activation of layer 4 neurons, the input cells of the barrel columns. The neuronal Ca(2+) signal also spread across barrel column borders mainly in layer 2/3, but the glutamate-mediated astrocyte response stayed restricted to the barrel column. In contrast, when interfering with inhibitory pathways by blocking either purinergic, adenosine or gamma-aminobutyric acid(A) receptors, the stimulation activated a Ca(2+) response in a much larger astrocyte population no longer restricted to the borders of the barrel column. We also observed spontaneous and evoked Ca(2+) activity in the synaptic target cells of layer 4 neurons, the layer 2/3 pyramidal cells, but again, we never recorded Ca(2+) responses in astrocytes following activity in this neuronal population. Our data show that astrocytes can discriminate and selectively respond to the activity of a subpopulation of excitatory neurons within a given brain region. This selectivity in the astrocyte response describes a new level of complexity and integration in the reaction of astrocytes to neuronal activity. |
| Keywords: | Astrocyte, Barrel Cortex, Calcium, Neuron–Glia Interaction, Slice |
| Source: | Cerebral Cortex |
| ISSN: | 1047-3211 |
| Publisher: | Oxford University Press |
| Volume: | 18 |
| Number: | 10 |
| Page Range: | 2450-2459 |
| Date: | October 2008 |
| Official Publication: | https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bhn009 |
| PubMed: | View item in PubMed |
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