Department of Fundamental Neurosciences, University of Lausanne, Rue du Bugnon 9, 1005 Lausanne, Switzerland.
Nat Rev Neurosci. 2014 May;15(5):327-35. doi: 10.1038/nrn3725.
Astrocyte Ca(2+) signalling has been proposed to link neuronal information in different spatial-temporal dimensions to achieve a higher level of brain integration. However, some discrepancies in the results of recent studies challenge this view and highlight key insufficiencies in our current understanding. In parallel, new experimental approaches that enable the study of astrocyte physiology at higher spatial-temporal resolution in intact brain preparations are beginning to reveal an unexpected level of compartmentalization and sophistication in astrocytic Ca(2+) dynamics. This newly revealed complexity needs to be attentively considered in order to understand how astrocytes may contribute to brain information processing.
星形胶质细胞 Ca(2+)信号被认为可以将不同时空维度的神经元信息联系起来，从而实现更高水平的大脑整合。然而，最近研究结果中的一些差异挑战了这一观点，并突出了我们当前理解中的关键不足。与此同时，新的实验方法使我们能够在完整的大脑标本中以更高的时空分辨率研究星形胶质细胞的生理学，这些方法开始揭示星形胶质细胞 Ca(2+)动力学中出人意料的分隔和复杂性。为了理解星形胶质细胞如何有助于大脑信息处理，需要认真考虑这种新出现的复杂性。
