Dynamical Analysis of Neuron-Astrocyte Interactions at the Tripartite Synapse
Abstract
Astrocytes are currently gaining attention from the neuroscience community due to their contribution to multitude of functions, which includes but not limited to their ability to change the neuron's spiking frequency, their capacity to alter neuron's firing activity and their involvement in memory formation and synaptic plasticity regulation. To date, many computational models describing the dynamics of astrocytes, together with their complex interaction with neurons, were proposed, however, these could still be improved since the exploration to their functions and mechanisms was way later than neurons. Hence, in this paper, we want to investigate the steady state behavior of the neuron-astrocyte interaction through a presentation of phase plane analysis. We utilize the Adaptive Exponential Integrate-and-Fire model to describe the firing dynamics of the neuron while drawing inspiration from the work of Postnov and collaborators to describe the calcium dynamics of the astrocyte. Our findings unveil that astrocytes can stimulate an inactive neuron and modulate an active neuron's firing pattern. In addition, astrocyte can also inhibit neurons from firing. These highlight the crucial role that the contribution of astrocyte to the synapse plays in regulating neuronal activity and producing a range of neuronal firing behaviors within the neuron-astrocyte ensemble. They may impact neuronal synchronization, an attribute of several illnesses, including epilepsy, and, on the other hand, may enhance brain information processing.
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