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Brain Sciences
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How Do Astrocytes Shape Synaptic Transmission and Plasticity?
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How Do Astrocytes Shape Synaptic Transmission and Plasticity?

A special issue of Brain Sciences (ISSN 2076-3425). This special issue belongs to the section "Neuroglia".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (24 October 2022) | Viewed by 6366

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Sergey Kasparov

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of Bristol, University Walk, Bristol BS8 1TD, UK
Interests: astrocyte; receptor; signalling; noradrenaline; G-protein coupled receptors; glioblastoma; imaging; patch clamp; neuroprotection; optogenetics; Ca2+; cAMP; brainstem; cardio-respiratory control
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Anja Teschemacher

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of Bristol, University Walk, Bristol BS8 1TD, UK
Interests: astrocytes; glia-neurone-communication; lactate; central noradrenergic mechanisms; noradrenaline; locus coeruleus; rostral ventro-lateral medulla; cardio-respiratory control; viral vectors
Dr. Anton N. Shuvaev

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Research Institute of Molecular Medicine and Pathobiochemistry, 660022 Krasnoyarsk, Russia
Interests: Neurodegenerative Diseases; Molecular Biology; Neuron

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the last two decades, neuroscience has witnessed a major shift in the way we approach the operation of various brain circuits. It has become clear that the simplistic idea to envisage the brain as a network of interconnected neurons has failed. Neurons never operate in isolation, and they are actively modulated by astrocytes. Moreover, in some cases, we see evidence of the active participation of astrocytes in the most basic physiological functions of the brain, for example, in the context of cardiorespiratory homeostasis.

There are numerous ways via which astrocytes modify and control neuronal networks. This includes control of the extracellular glutamate concentration, control of ions, such as the local potassium concentration, control of the local pH and metabolic and signalling interactions via lactate and ATP. All of these pathways are powerful enough to change the output of neuronal networks with implications for all brain functions, from control of breathing to plasticity, memory and sleep cycle control, among others.

We are looking at contributions from all laboratories interested in the interplay between astrocytes and neurons under normal and pathological conditions and hope that this volume will further promote research in this direction.

Prof. Dr. Sergey Kasparov
Dr. Anja Teschemacher
Dr. Anton N. Shuvaev
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • astrocyte
  • neuron
  • signaling
  • tripartite synapse
  • lactate
  • plasticity
  • gliotransmission

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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14 pages, 7945 KiB  
Article
Role for Astrocytes in mGluR-Dependent LTD in the Neocortex and Hippocampus
by Ulyana Lalo and Yuriy Pankratov
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(12), 1718; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12121718 - 15 Dec 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2180
Abstract
Astroglia are an active element of brain plasticity, capable to release small molecule gliotransmitters by various mechanisms and regulate synaptic strength. While importance of glia-neuron communications for long-term potentiation has been rather widely reported, research into role for astrocytes in long-depression (LTD) is [...] Read more.
Astroglia are an active element of brain plasticity, capable to release small molecule gliotransmitters by various mechanisms and regulate synaptic strength. While importance of glia-neuron communications for long-term potentiation has been rather widely reported, research into role for astrocytes in long-depression (LTD) is just gaining momentum. Here, we explored the role for astrocytes in the prominent form of synaptic plasticity—mGluR-dependent LTD. We found out the substantial contribution of the Group I receptors, especially mGluR1 subtype, into Ca2+-signaling in hippocampal and neocortical astrocytes, which can be activated during synaptic stimulation used for LTD induction. Our data demonstrate that mGluR receptors can activate SNARE-dependent release of ATP from astrocytes which in turn can directly activate postsynaptic P2X receptors in the hippocampal and neocortical neurons. The latter mechanism has recently been shown to cause the synaptic depression via triggering the internalisation of AMPA receptors. Using mouse model of impaired glial exocytosis (dnSNARE mice), we demonstrated that mGluR-activated release of ATP from astrocytes is essential for regulation of mGluR-dependent LTD in CA3-CA1 and layer 2/3 synapses. Our data also suggest that astrocyte-related pathway relies mainly on mGluR1 receptors and act synergistically with neuronal mechanisms dependent mainly on mGluR5. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue How Do Astrocytes Shape Synaptic Transmission and Plasticity?)
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Review

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15 pages, 1222 KiB  
Review
Lactate-Mediated Signaling in the Brain—An Update
by Barbara Vaccari-Cardoso, Maria Antipina, Anja G. Teschemacher and Sergey Kasparov
Brain Sci. 2023, 13(1), 49; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13010049 - 27 Dec 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3380
Abstract
Lactate is a universal metabolite produced and released by all cells in the body. Traditionally it was viewed as energy currency that is generated from pyruvate at the end of the glycolytic pathway and sent into the extracellular space for other cells to [...] Read more.
Lactate is a universal metabolite produced and released by all cells in the body. Traditionally it was viewed as energy currency that is generated from pyruvate at the end of the glycolytic pathway and sent into the extracellular space for other cells to take up and consume. In the brain, such a mechanism was postulated to operate between astrocytes and neurons many years ago. Later, the discovery of lactate receptors opened yet another chapter in the quest to understand lactate actions. Other ideas, such as modulation of NMDA receptors were also proposed. Up to this day, we still do not have a consensus view on the relevance of any of these mechanisms to brain functions or their contribution to human or animal physiology. While the field develops new ideas, in this brief review we analyze some recently published studies in order to focus on some unresolved controversies and highlight the limitations that need to be addressed in future work. Clearly, only by using similar and overlapping methods, cross-referencing experiments, and perhaps collaborative efforts, we can finally understand what the role of lactate in the brain is and why this ubiquitous molecule is so important. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue How Do Astrocytes Shape Synaptic Transmission and Plasticity?)
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