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Jia X, Shao W, Hu N, Shi J, Fan X, Chen C, Wang Y, Chen L, Qiao H, Li X. Learning populations with hubs govern the initiation and propagation of spontaneous bursts in neuronal networks after learning. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:854199. [PMID: 36061604 PMCID: PMC9433803 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.854199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Accepted: 07/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Spontaneous bursts in neuronal networks with propagation involving a large number of synchronously firing neurons are considered to be a crucial feature of these networks both in vivo and in vitro. Recently, learning has been shown to improve the association and synchronization of spontaneous events in neuronal networks by promoting the firing of spontaneous bursts. However, little is known about the relationship between the learning phase and spontaneous bursts. By combining high-resolution measurement with a 4,096-channel complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) microelectrode array (MEA) and graph theory, we studied how the learning phase influenced the initiation of spontaneous bursts in cultured networks of rat cortical neurons in vitro. We found that a small number of selected populations carried most of the stimulus information and contributed to learning. Moreover, several new burst propagation patterns appeared in spontaneous firing after learning. Importantly, these "learning populations" had more hubs in the functional network that governed the initiation of spontaneous burst activity. These results suggest that changes in the functional structure of learning populations may be the key mechanism underlying increased bursts after learning. Our findings could increase understanding of the important role that synaptic plasticity plays in the regulation of spontaneous activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoli Jia
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neural Engineering, Tianjin, China
| | - Wenwei Shao
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neural Engineering, Tianjin, China
| | - Nan Hu
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neural Engineering, Tianjin, China
| | - Jianxin Shi
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neural Engineering, Tianjin, China
| | - Xiu Fan
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neural Engineering, Tianjin, China
| | - Chong Chen
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Youwei Wang
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neural Engineering, Tianjin, China
| | - Liqun Chen
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neural Engineering, Tianjin, China
| | - Huanhuan Qiao
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neural Engineering, Tianjin, China
| | - Xiaohong Li
- Academy of Medical Engineering and Translational Medicine, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory of Brain Science and Neural Engineering, Tianjin, China
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Okada M, Kono R, Sato Y, Kobayashi C, Koyama R, Ikegaya Y. Highly active neurons emerging in vitro. J Neurophysiol 2021; 125:1322-1329. [PMID: 33656933 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00663.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Mean firing rates vary across neurons in a neuronal network. Although most neurons infrequently emit spikes, a small fraction of neurons exhibit extremely high frequencies of spikes; this fraction of neurons plays a pivotal role in information processing, however, little is known about how these outliers emerge and whether they are maintained over time. In primary cultures of mouse hippocampal neurons, we traced highly active neurons every 24 h for 7 wk by optically observing the fluorescent protein dVenus; the expression of dVenus was controlled by the promoter of Arc, an immediate early gene that is induced by neuronal activity. Under default-mode conditions, 0.3%-0.4% of neurons were spontaneously Arc-dVenus positive, exhibiting high firing rates. These neurons were spatially clustered, exhibited intermittently repeated dVenus expression, and often continued to express Arc-dVenus for approximately 2 wk. Thus, highly active neurons constitute a few select functional subpopulations in the neuronal network.NEW & NOTEWORTHY The overdispersion of neuronal activity levels can often be attributed to very few neurons exhibiting extremely high firing rates, but due to technical difficulty, no studies have examined how these outliers are selected during development and whether they are maintained over time. We optically monitored highly active neurons for as long as 7 wk in vitro and found that they constituted a unique population that was different from other "mediocre" neurons with normal firing rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mami Okada
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Rena Kono
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yu Sato
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Chiaki Kobayashi
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Ryuta Koyama
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yuji Ikegaya
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.,Center for Information and Neural Networks, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, Suita, Japan.,Institute for AI and Beyond, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
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Premi E, Calhoun VD, Diano M, Gazzina S, Cosseddu M, Alberici A, Archetti S, Paternicò D, Gasparotti R, van Swieten J, Galimberti D, Sanchez-Valle R, Laforce R, Moreno F, Synofzik M, Graff C, Masellis M, Tartaglia MC, Rowe J, Vandenberghe R, Finger E, Tagliavini F, de Mendonça A, Santana I, Butler C, Ducharme S, Gerhard A, Danek A, Levin J, Otto M, Frisoni G, Cappa S, Sorbi S, Padovani A, Rohrer JD, Borroni B. The inner fluctuations of the brain in presymptomatic Frontotemporal Dementia: The chronnectome fingerprint. Neuroimage 2019; 189:645-654. [PMID: 30716457 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.01.080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2018] [Revised: 01/27/2019] [Accepted: 01/31/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) is preceded by a long period of subtle brain changes, occurring in the absence of overt cognitive symptoms, that need to be still fully characterized. Dynamic network analysis based on resting-state magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) is a potentially powerful tool for the study of preclinical FTD. In the present study, we employed a "chronnectome" approach (recurring, time-varying patterns of connectivity) to evaluate measures of dynamic connectivity in 472 at-risk FTD subjects from the Genetic Frontotemporal dementia research Initiative (GENFI) cohort. We considered 249 subjects with FTD-related pathogenetic mutations and 223 mutation non-carriers (HC). Dynamic connectivity was evaluated using independent component analysis and sliding-time window correlation to rs-fMRI data, and meta-state measures of global brain flexibility were extracted. Results show that presymptomatic FTD exhibits diminished dynamic fluidity, visiting less meta-states, shifting less often across them, and travelling through a narrowed meta-state distance, as compared to HC. Dynamic connectivity changes characterize preclinical FTD, arguing for the desynchronization of the inner fluctuations of the brain. These changes antedate clinical symptoms, and might represent an early signature of FTD to be used as a biomarker in clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Enrico Premi
- Centre for Neurodegenerative Disorders, Neurology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy; Stroke Unit, Azienda Socio Sanitaria Territoriale Spedali Civili, Spedali Civili Hospital, Brescia, Italy
| | - Vince D Calhoun
- The Mind Research Network, Albuquerque, USA; Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, USA
| | - Matteo Diano
- Department of Psychology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy; Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, CoRPS - Center of Research on Psychology in Somatic Diseases, Tilburg University, the Netherlands
| | - Stefano Gazzina
- Centre for Neurodegenerative Disorders, Neurology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | - Maura Cosseddu
- Centre for Neurodegenerative Disorders, Neurology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | - Antonella Alberici
- Centre for Neurodegenerative Disorders, Neurology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | - Silvana Archetti
- Biotechnology Laboratory, Department of Diagnostic, Spedali Civili Hospital, Brescia, Italy
| | - Donata Paternicò
- Centre for Neurodegenerative Disorders, Neurology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | | | - John van Swieten
- Department of Neurology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Daniela Galimberti
- Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, "Dino Ferrari" Center, University of Milan, Fondazione Cà Granda, IRCCS Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Milan, Italy
| | - Raquel Sanchez-Valle
- Neurology Department, Hospital Clinic, Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Robert Laforce
- Clinique Interdisciplinaire de Mémoire, Département des Sciences Neurologiques, CHU de Québec, Faculté de Médecine, Université Laval, QC, Canada
| | - Fermin Moreno
- Department of Neurology, Hospital Universitario Donostia, San Sebastian, Gipuzkoa, Spain
| | - Matthis Synofzik
- Department of Cognitive Neurology, Center for Neurology, Hertie-Institute for Clinical Brain Research, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Caroline Graff
- Karolinska Institutet, Department NVS, Center for Alzheimer Research, Division of Neurogenetics, Sweden
| | - Mario Masellis
- LC Campbell Cognitive Neurology Research Unit, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Maria Carmela Tartaglia
- Toronto Western Hospital, Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Disease, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - James Rowe
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Rik Vandenberghe
- Laboratory for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Elizabeth Finger
- Department of Clinical Neurological Sciences, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| | - Fabrizio Tagliavini
- Fondazione Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Isabel Santana
- Neurology Department, Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Chris Butler
- Department of Clinical Neurology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Simon Ducharme
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Alex Gerhard
- Institute of Brain, Behaviour and Mental Health, The University of Manchester, Withington, Manchester, UK
| | - Adrian Danek
- Neurologische Klinik und Poliklinik, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany
| | - Johannes Levin
- Neurologische Klinik und Poliklinik, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Munich, Germany
| | - Markus Otto
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Giovanni Frisoni
- Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Istituto Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli, Brescia, Italy; Memory Clinic and LANVIE-Laboratory of Neuroimaging of Aging, University Hospitals and University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Stefano Cappa
- Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS), Istituto Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli, Brescia, Italy
| | - Sandro Sorbi
- Department of Neuroscience, Psychology, Drug Research and Child Health, University of Florence, Florence, Italy; Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico (IRCCS) "Don Gnocchi", Florence, Italy
| | - Alessandro Padovani
- Centre for Neurodegenerative Disorders, Neurology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | | | - Barbara Borroni
- Centre for Neurodegenerative Disorders, Neurology Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
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Mesoscale Architecture Shapes Initiation and Richness of Spontaneous Network Activity. J Neurosci 2017; 37:3972-3987. [PMID: 28292833 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2552-16.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2016] [Revised: 02/06/2017] [Accepted: 02/11/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Spontaneous activity in the absence of external input, including propagating waves of activity, is a robust feature of neuronal networks in vivo and in vitro The neurophysiological and anatomical requirements for initiation and persistence of such activity, however, are poorly understood, as is their role in the function of neuronal networks. Computational network studies indicate that clustered connectivity may foster the generation, maintenance, and richness of spontaneous activity. Since this mesoscale architecture cannot be systematically modified in intact tissue, testing these predictions is impracticable in vivo Here, we investigate how the mesoscale structure shapes spontaneous activity in generic networks of rat cortical neurons in vitro In these networks, neurons spontaneously arrange into local clusters with high neurite density and form fasciculating long-range axons. We modified this structure by modulation of protein kinase C, an enzyme regulating neurite growth and cell migration. Inhibition of protein kinase C reduced neuronal aggregation and fasciculation of axons, i.e., promoted uniform architecture. Conversely, activation of protein kinase C promoted aggregation of neurons into clusters, local connectivity, and bundling of long-range axons. Supporting predictions from theory, clustered networks were more spontaneously active and generated diverse activity patterns. Neurons within clusters received stronger synaptic inputs and displayed increased membrane potential fluctuations. Intensified clustering promoted the initiation of synchronous bursting events but entailed incomplete network recruitment. Moderately clustered networks appear optimal for initiation and propagation of diverse patterns of activity. Our findings support a crucial role of the mesoscale architectures in the regulation of spontaneous activity dynamics.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Computational studies predict richer and persisting spatiotemporal patterns of spontaneous activity in neuronal networks with neuron clustering. To test this, we created networks of varying architecture in vitro Supporting these predictions, the generation and spatiotemporal patterns of propagation were most variable in networks with intermediate clustering and lowest in uniform networks. Grid-like clustering, on the other hand, facilitated spontaneous activity but led to degenerating patterns of propagation. Neurons outside clusters had weaker synaptic input than neurons within clusters, in which increased membrane potential fluctuations facilitated the initiation of synchronized spike activity. Our results thus show that the intermediate level organization of neuronal networks strongly influences the dynamics of their activity.
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