Dissecting the regional diversity of glial cells by applying -omic technologies

e-Neuroforum ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela C. Dieterich ◽  
Moritz J. Rossner
Keyword(s):  
Glial Cells ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Recent Progress ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Cell Populations ◽  
Cellular Activity ◽  
Regional Diversity ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Exploratory Approach ◽  
The Brain

AbstractNeuronal as well as glial cells contribute to higher order brain functions. Many observations show that neurons and glial cells are not only physically highly intermingled but are physiologically tightly connected and mutually depend at various levels on each other. Moreover, macroglia classes like astrocytes, NG2 cells and oligodendrocytes are not at all homogenous cell populations but do possess a markedly heterogeneity in various aspects similar to neurons. The diversity of differences in morphology, functionality and, cellular activity has been acknowledged recently and will be integrated into a concept of brain function that pictures a neural rather than a puristical neuronal world. With the recent progress in “omic” technologies, an unbiased and exploratory approach toward an enhanced understanding of glial heterogeneity has become possible. Here, we provide an overview on current technical transcriptomic and proteomic approaches used to dissect glial heterogeneity of the brain.

scholarly journals The restless brain: how intrinsic activity organizes brain function

2015 ◽  
Vol 370 (1668) ◽  
pp. 20140172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcus E. Raichle
Keyword(s):  
Brain Function ◽  
Functional Organization ◽  
Sensory Information ◽  
Intrinsic Activity ◽  
Systems Neuroscience ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Molecular Neuroscience ◽  
Constant State ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
The Brain

Traditionally studies of brain function have focused on task-evoked responses. By their very nature such experiments tacitly encourage a reflexive view of brain function. While such an approach has been remarkably productive at all levels of neuroscience, it ignores the alternative possibility that brain functions are mainly intrinsic and ongoing, involving information processing for interpreting, responding to and predicting environmental demands. I suggest that the latter view best captures the essence of brain function, a position that accords well with the allocation of the brain's energy resources, its limited access to sensory information and a dynamic, intrinsic functional organization. The nature of this intrinsic activity, which exhibits a surprising level of organization with dimensions of both space and time, is revealed in the ongoing activity of the brain and its metabolism. As we look to the future, understanding the nature of this intrinsic activity will require integrating knowledge from cognitive and systems neuroscience with cellular and molecular neuroscience where ion channels, receptors, components of signal transduction and metabolic pathways are all in a constant state of flux. The reward for doing so will be a much better understanding of human behaviour in health and disease.

scholarly journals Evolutionary modifications in human brain connectivity associated with schizophrenia

Brain ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 142 (12) ◽  
pp. 3991-4002 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martijn P van den Heuvel ◽  
Lianne H Scholtens ◽  
Siemon C de Lange ◽  
Rory Pijnenburg ◽  
Wiepke Cahn ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Brain Connectivity ◽  
Brain Evolution ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Human Brain Evolution ◽  
The Brain

See Vértes and Seidlitz (doi:10.1093/brain/awz353) for a scientific commentary on this article. Is schizophrenia a by-product of human brain evolution? By comparing the human and chimpanzee connectomes, van den Heuvel et al. demonstrate that connections unique to the human brain show greater involvement in schizophrenia pathology. Modifications in service of higher-order brain functions may have rendered the brain more vulnerable to dysfunction.

scholarly journals Ask and You Shall Receive: A closer look on unsolved consciousness issue

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Motavalli ◽  
◽  
Javad Mahmoudi ◽  
Alireza Majdi ◽  
Saeed Sadigh-Eteghad ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Neural Correlates ◽  
Higher Order ◽  
Narrative Review ◽  
Historical Aspects ◽  
Neural Correlates Of Consciousness ◽  
States Of Consciousness ◽  
Mind And Body ◽  
The Brain

Although there are numerous views about the concept of consciousness, no consensus exists regarding the meaning. However, with the aid of the latest neuroscientific developments, the misleading obstacles related to consciousness have been removed. Over the last few decades, neuroscientific efforts in determining the function of the brain and merging these findings with philosophical theories, have brought a more comprehensive perception of the notion of consciousness. In addition to metaphysical/ontological views of consciousness e.g., higher-order theories, reflexive theories, and representationalist theories, there are some brain directed topics in this matter which include but not are limited to neural correlates of consciousness (NCC), brain loop connectivity, and lateralization. This narrative review sheds light on cultural and historical aspects of consciousness in old and middle ages and introduces some of the prominent philosophical discussions related to mind and body. Also, it illustrates the correlation of brain function with states of consciousness with a focus on the roles of function and connectivity.

scholarly journals Glycolytically impaired glial cells fuel neural metabolism via β-oxidation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefanie Schirmeier ◽  
Helen Hertenstein ◽  
Ellen McMullen ◽  
Leon Deharde ◽  
Marko Brankatschk
Keyword(s):  
Glial Cells ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Ketone Bodies ◽  
Carbohydrate Restriction ◽  
Neuronal Function ◽  
Adverse Conditions ◽  
Energy Stores ◽  
Metabolic Sensor ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Starvation Conditions

Abstract Neuronal function is highly energy demanding and thus requires efficient and constant metabolite delivery. Like their mammalian counterparts Drosophila glia are highly glycolytic and provide lactate to fuel neuronal metabolism. However, flies are able to survive for several weeks in the absence of glial glycolysis1. Here, we study how glial cells maintain sufficient nutrient supply to neurons under conditions of carbohydrate restriction. We show that glycolytically impaired glia switch to fatty acid breakdown via β-oxidation and provide ketone bodies as an alternate neuronal fuel. Moreover, flies also rely on glial β-oxidation under starvation conditions with glial loss of β-oxidation increasing susceptibility to starvation. Further, we show that glial cells act as a metabolic sensor in the brain and can induce mobilization of peripheral energy stores to ensure brain metabolic homeostasis. In summary, our study gives pioneering evidence on the importance of glial β-oxidation and ketogenesis for brain function, and survival, under adverse conditions, like malnutrition. The glial capacity to utilize lipids as an energy source seems to be conserved from flies to humans.

Synaptic Transmission with the Glia

Physiology ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 178-184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabino Vesce ◽  
Paola Bezzi ◽  
Andrea Volterra
Keyword(s):  
Synaptic Transmission ◽  
Glial Cells ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Synaptic Integration ◽  
New Findings ◽  
The Brain

For decades, scientists thought that all of the missing secrets of brain function resided in neurons. However, a wave of new findings indicates that glial cells, formerly considered mere supporters and subordinate to neurons, participate actively in synaptic integration and processing of information in the brain.

scholarly journals Searching through functional space reveals distributed visual, auditory, and semantic coding in the human brain

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sreejan Kumar ◽  
Cameron T. Ellis ◽  
Thomas O’Connell ◽  
Marvin M Chun ◽  
Nicholas B. Turk-Browne
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Computational Models ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Functional Space ◽  
Semantic Features ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Auditory Features ◽  
The Brain

AbstractThe extent to which brain functions are localized or distributed is a foundational question in neuroscience. In the human brain, common fMRI methods such as cluster correction, atlas parcellation, and anatomical searchlight are biased by design toward finding localized representations. Here we introduce the functional searchlight approach as an alternative to anatomical searchlight analysis, the most commonly used exploratory multivariate fMRI technique. Functional searchlight removes any anatomical bias by grouping voxels based only on functional similarity and ignoring anatomical proximity. We report evidence that visual and auditory features from deep neural networks and semantic features from a natural language processing model are more widely distributed across the brain than previously acknowledged. This approach provides a new way to evaluate and constrain computational models with brain activity and pushes our understanding of human brain function further along the spectrum from strict modularity toward distributed representation.

scholarly journals Current Paradigms to Explore the Gut Microbiota Linkage to Neurological Disorders

EMJ Neurology ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 68-79
Author(s):  
Varruchi Sharma ◽  
Atul Sankhyan ◽  
Anshika Varshney ◽  
Renuka Choudhary ◽  
Anil K. Sharma
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Intervention Strategy ◽  
Neurological Complications ◽  
Communication Link ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Current Review ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

It has been suggested that an intricate communication link exists between the gut microbiota and the brain and its ability to modulate behaviour of an individual governing homeostasis. Metabolic activity of the microbiota is considered to be relatively constant in healthy individuals, despite differences in the composition of microbiota. The metabolites produced by gut microbiota and their homeostatic balance is often perturbed as a result of neurological complications. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to explore the link between gut microbiota and brain function and behaviour through neural, endocrine, and immune pathways. This current review focusses on the impact of altered gut microbiota on brain functions and how microbiome modulation by use of probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics might prove beneficial in the prevention and/or treatment of neurological disorders. It is important to carefully understand the complex mechanisms underlying the gut–brain axis so as to use the gut microbiota as a therapeutic intervention strategy for neurological disorders.

Fuzzy-based computational simulations of brain functions – preliminary concept

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Piotr Prokopowicz ◽  
Dariusz Mikołajewski
Keyword(s):  
Applied Sciences ◽  
Fuzzy Logic ◽  
Computational Neuroscience ◽  
Brain Function ◽  
Computational Models ◽  
Fuzzy Numbers ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Current State ◽  
Simulation Based ◽  
The Brain

AbstractResearch on the computational models of the brain constitutes an important part of the current challenges within computational neuroscience. The current results are not satisfying. Despite the continuous efforts of scientists and clinicians, it is hard to fully explain all the mechanisms of a brain function. Computational models of the brain based on fuzzy logic, including ordered fuzzy numbers, may constitute another breakthrough in the aforementioned area, offering a completing position to the current state of the art. The aim of this paper is to assess the extent to which possible opportunities concerning computational brain models based on fuzzy logic techniques may be exploited both in the area of theoretical and experimental computational neuroscience and in clinical applications, including our own concept. The proposed approach can open a family of novel methods for a more effective and (neuro)biologically reliable brain simulation based on fuzzy logic techniques useful in both basic sciences and applied sciences.

Neuropathogenesis: rogue glia cause mayhem in the brain

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Antony
Keyword(s):  
Glial Cells ◽  
Immune Cells ◽  
Neurological Disorders ◽  
White Matter Injury ◽  
Periventricular White Matter ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Aids Dementia ◽  
Injured Tissue ◽  
Injured Brain ◽  
The Brain

AbstractGlia, including astrocytes, microglia and oligodendrocytes, are important components that maintain the architecture of the brain and in many ways contribute to the proper functioning of neurons. Glial cells vastly outnumber neurons in the brain and independently control several crucial brain functions. Impaired glial cells are the cause of several diseases, and pharmacological targeting to repair damaged glia will enable functional recovery in patients suffering from devastating neurological disorders. The interaction between glial cells and some patrolling immune cells in the brain comprise the brain-specific immune system that protects the brain from extraneous agents and repairs injured tissue. While this system can cope with minor insults and infections, when faced with significant challenges such as AIDS dementia, multiple sclerosis, Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, etc., an effective and balanced immune response that facilitates repair and protection is found wanting. Several debilitating neurological disorders are often associated with dysfunctional glial cells that have limited ability to repair the injured brain and even promote brain damage. In this discussion, specific signaling pathways in glia that are affected in AIDS dementia and periventricular white matter injury will be highlighted.

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