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Sakaibara M, Yamamoto H, Murota H, Monma N, Sato S, Hirano-Iwata A. Enhanced responses to inflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 in micropatterned networks of cultured cortical neurons. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2024; 695:149379. [PMID: 38159413 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2023.149379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2023] [Accepted: 12/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
Cortical neurons in dissociated cultures are an indispensable model system for pharmacological research that provides insights into chemical responses in well-defined environments. However, cortical neurons plated on homogeneous substrates develop an unstructured network that exhibits excessively synchronized activity, which occasionally masks the consequences induced by external substances. Here, we show that hyperactivity and excessive synchrony in cultured cortical networks can be effectively suppressed by growing neurons in microfluidic devices. These devices feature a hierarchically modular design that resembles the in vivo network. We focused on interleukin-6, a pro-inflammatory cytokine, and assessed its acute and chronic effects. Fluorescence calcium imaging of spontaneous neural activity for up to 20 days of culture showed detectable modulation of collective activity events and neural correlation in micropatterned neurons, which was not apparent in neurons cultured on homogeneous substrates. Our results indicate that engineered neuronal networks provide a unique platform for detecting and understanding the fundamental effects of biochemical compounds on neuronal networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mamoru Sakaibara
- Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Hideaki Yamamoto
- Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.
| | - Hakuba Murota
- Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Nobuaki Monma
- Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Shigeo Sato
- Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Ayumi Hirano-Iwata
- Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Advanced Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
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