期刊
PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
卷 369, 期 1654, 页码 -出版社
ROYAL SOC
DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2013.0600
关键词
astrocytes; gap junction coupling; spatial properties; temperature; hippocampus; dentate gyrus
类别
资金
- NRW-Ruckkehrerprogramm
- Human Frontiers Science Programme [HFSP RGY-0084/2012]
- UCL Excellence Fellowship
Gap junction coupling enables astrocytes to form large networks. Its strength determines how easily a signalling molecule diffuses through the network and how far a locally initiated signal can spread. Changes of coupling strength are well-documented during development and in response to various stimuli. Precise quantification of coupling is needed for studying such modifications and their functional consequences. We therefore explored spatial properties of astrocyte coupling in a model simulating dye loading of single astrocytes. Dye spread into the astrocyte network could be characterized by a coupling length constant and coupling anisotropy. In experiments, the fluorescent marker Alexa Fluor 594 was used to measure these parameters in CA1 and dentate gyrus of the rat hippocampus. Coupling did not differ between regions but showed a temperature-dependence, partially owing to changes of intracellular diffusivity, detected by measuring coupling length constants but not the more variable cell counts of dye-coupled astrocytes. We further found that coupling is anisotropic depending on distance to the pyramidal cell layer, which correlated with regional differences of astrocyte morphology. This demonstrates that applying these new analytical approaches provides useful quantitative information on gap junction coupling and its heterogeneity.
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