Effect of elevated potassium on the ion content of mouse astrocytes and neurons

1992 ◽  
Vol 70 (S1) ◽  
pp. S263-S268 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Steve White ◽  
Sien Yao Chow ◽  
Y. C. Yen-Chow ◽  
Dixon M. Woodbury

Potassium is tightly regulated within the extracellular compartment of the brain. Nonetheless, it can increase 3- to 4-fold during periods of intense seizure activity and 10- to 20-fold under certain pathological conditions such as spreading depression. Within the central nervous system, neurons and astrocytes are both affected by shifts in the extracellular concentration of potassium. Elevated potassium can lead to a redistribution of other ions (e.g., calcium, sodium, chloride, hydrogen, etc.) within the cellular compartment of the brain. Small shifts in the extracellular potassium concentration can markedly affect acid–base homeostasis, energy metabolism, and volume regulation of these two brain cells. Since normal neuronal function is tightly coupled to the ability of the surrounding glial cells to regulate ionic shifts within the brain and since both cell types can be affected by shifts in the extracellular potassium, it is important to characterize their individual response to an elevation of this ion. This review describes the results of side-by-side studies conducted on cortical neurons and astrocytes, which assessed the effect of elevated potassium on their resting membrane potential, intracellular volume, and their intracellular concentration of potassium, sodium, and chloride. The results obtained from these studies suggest that there exists a marked cellular heterogeneity between neurons and astrocytes in their response to an elevation in the extracellular potassium concentration.Key words: astrocytes, neurons, ion concentration, neuronal–glial interactions, mouse, cell culture.

1983 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 831-850 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. P. Kraig ◽  
C. R. Ferreira-Filho ◽  
C. Nicholson

1. Extracellular pH (pHo) was measured in the cerebellar cortex of the rat using a recently developed liquid membrane ion-selective micropipette (ISM). pHo was determined during stimulus-evoked neuronal activity, elevated extracellular potassium concentration, [K+]o, spreading depression (SD), and complete ischemia. In many experiments [K+]o was simultaneously determined. 2. A train of local surface stimuli (LOC) produced an initial alkaline shift in pHo from a base line of 7.20-7.30 to 7.25-7.35. This was followed by a long-lasting acid phase that reached a plateau of 7.05-7.15 after 64 s of stimulation. pHo decrease was related to stimulus frequency, intensity, and duration. 3. Superfusion with Ringer solution containing manganese ions rapidly abolished parallel fiber-induced Purkinje cell synaptic depolarization together with the alkaline shifts while enhancing the acid shifts. 4. Superfusion of the cerebellar cortex with Ringer solution containing increasingly elevated [K+] progressively lowered pHo to a plateau of 6.95-7.05. The acidification occurred in the presence of ouabain but was reversed on return to the normal [K+]o or with the addition of the glycolytic blocker, fluoride. Stimulus-evoked alkaline shifts were enhanced by K+-Ringer superfusion. These experiments suggested that the acid shift was due to the metabolic production of an anion, possibly lactate. 5. Elevation of [K+]o above 8-12 mM often produced oscillation in pHo and [K+]o with a period of about 40 s. Sometimes these oscillations ended in a spontaneous SD or SD could be evoked by stimulation. Under these conditions of raised [K+]o, the SD consisted of a very pronounced alkaline transient followed by a small, long-lasting acid shift. When SD was induced by conditioning the cerebellum with proprionate or lowered NaCl, the alkaline phase was reduced and the acid enhanced. 6. Complete ischemia began with a progressive decrease of pHo and rise in [K+]o. When [K+]o reached 12 mM, a second more rapid rise in [K+]o to 40 mM or more occurred. This was correlated with 0.1-0.2 pHo transient increase similar to that seen during SD. pHo eventually reached a plateau of 6.60-6.80, close to neutrality. 7. Superfusion with Ringer solution containing acetazolamide immediately altered pHo homeostasis by increasing base-line pHo by about 0.10 and enhanced the induced pHo changes. These results suggest that carbonic anhydrase (CA) is important for acute buffering of the brain extracellular microenvironment. 8. The above results were interpreted in terms of changes in extracellular strong ion concentration differences ( [SID]o), extracellular concentration of total weak acid ( [Atot]o) and partial pressure of CO2 (Pco2) in the brain microenvironment. The results indicate that neuronal activity produces changes in many of the constituents of the microenvironment.


Development ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 122 (2) ◽  
pp. 647-658
Author(s):  
N. Maeda ◽  
M. Noda

6B4 proteoglycan/phosphacan is one of the major phosphate-buffered saline-soluble chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans of the brain. Recently, this molecule has been demonstrated to be an extracellular variant of the proteoglycan-type protein tyrosine phosphatase, PTPzeta (RPTPbeta). The influence of the 6B4 proteoglycan, adsorbed onto the substratum, on cell adhesion and neurite outgrowth was studied using dissociated neurons from the cerebral cortex and thalamus. 6B4 proteoglycan adsorbed onto plastic tissue culture dishes did not support neuronal cell adhesion, but rather exerted repulsive effects on cortical and thalamic neurons. When neurons were densely seeded on patterned substrata consisting of a grid-like structure of alternating poly-L-lysine and 6B4 proteoglycan-coated poly-L-lysine domains, they were concentrated on the poly-L-lysine domains. However, 6B4 proteoglycan did not retard the differentiation of neurons but rather promoted neurite outgrowth and development of the dendrites of cortical neurons, when neurons were sparsely seeded on poly-L-lysine-conditioned coverslips continuously coated with 6B4 proteoglycan. This effect of 6B4 proteoglycan on the neurite extension of cortical neurons was apparent even on coverslips co-coated with fibronectin or tenascin. By contrast, the neurite extension of thalamic neurons was not modified by 6B4 proteoglycan. Chondroitinase ABC or keratanase digestion of 6B4 proteoglycan did not affect its neurite outgrowth promoting activity, but a polyclonal antibody against 6B4 proteoglycan completely suppressed this activity, suggesting that a protein moiety is responsible for the activity. 6B4 proteoglycan transiently promoted tyrosine phosphorylation of an 85x10(3) Mr protein in the cortical neurons, which correlated with the induction of neurite outgrowth. These results suggest that 6B4 proteoglycan/phosphacan modulates morphogenesis and differentiation of neurons dependent on its spatiotemporal distribution and the cell types in the brain.


Author(s):  
J Firth

The normal range of potassium concentration in serum is 3.5 to 5.0 mmol/litre and within cells it is 150 to 160 mmol/litre, the ratio of intracellular to extracellular potassium concentration being a critical determinant of cellular resting membrane potential and thereby of the function of excitable tissues....


2003 ◽  
Vol 90 (4) ◽  
pp. 2163-2170 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank Richter ◽  
Sven Rupprecht ◽  
Alfred Lehmenkühler ◽  
Hans-Georg Schaible

Spreading depression (SD), a neuronal mechanism involved in brain pathophysiology, occurs in brain areas with high neuronal density such as the cerebral cortex. By contrast, the brain stem is thought to be resistant to SD. Here we show that DC shifts resembling cortical SD can be elicited in rat brain stem by topical application of KCl but not by pricking the brain stem. However, this was only possible until postnatal day 13, and, in addition, susceptibility for SD had to be enhanced. The latter was achieved by superfusion of the brain stem for 45 min with a solution containing acetate instead of chloride ions. Transient asphyxia or hypoxia by 2 min breathing 6% O2 in N2 had a similar effect. Negative brain stem DC deflections were paralleled by an increase of extracellular potassium concentration ≤40 mM and were spreading, but unlike cortical SD they were not inducible by glutamate and N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA). Time course and slope of brain stem SD either resembled cortical SD or were long-lasting and sustained. The latter stopped normal breathing. Different from cortical SD, negative brain stem DC deflections were changed in their slope (mostly converted into sustained shape, peak time was significantly prolonged, decline-time and duration were prolonged), but not abolished by the NMDA receptor blocker MK-801. Thus we demonstrate that the immature brain stem has the capacity to generate negative DC shifts, which could be relevant as a risk factor in newborn brain stem function.


1992 ◽  
Vol 262 (5) ◽  
pp. L549-L554 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. F. Donnelly ◽  
C. Jiang ◽  
G. G. Haddad

Most mammalian neurons are known to be sensitive to oxygen availability, but the nature of the sensitivity is not well understood. Previous results have suggested that brain stem neurons may respond differently than cortical neurons during oxygen deprivation. We pursued this hypothesis by examining the time course of change in membrane potential (Vm) and input resistance (Rn) during periods of reduced oxygen availability in a tissue slice preparation. Since extracellular potassium is an important factor determining resting membrane potential, extracellular K+ activity, (K+o), was also measured. Adult rat neurons from three regions were recorded: hippocampal CA1 region, hypoglossal nucleus (XII), and dorsal vagal motor nucleus (DMNX). At the end of a 5-min hypoxic exposure, all neurons depolarized and this depolarization was greatest in XII (28.8 +/- 3.2 mV) compared with DMNX (17.8 +/- 3.7 mV) and CA1 (6.7 +/- 4.4 mV). K+o increased in all regions and was larger in DMNX (7.1 +/- 2.6 mM) and XII (5.3 +/- 2.1 mM) compared with CA1 (2.2 +/- 1.4 mM). During more severe oxygen deprivation (anoxia), neurons also depolarized at different rates with XII greater than DMNX greater than CA1. K+o increased markedly (28–36 mM) by 5 min into anoxia, and no statistical difference was observed between regions. From these results we conclude that 1) all cells tested were depolarized after 5 min of hypoxia; however, regional variability exists in the sensitivity to hypoxia; brain stem neurons depolarize faster than cortical neurons; 2) during anoxia, all brain stem and cortical neurons show a major depolarization, and 3) these differences in membrane potential cannot be solely attributed to changes in extracellular K+.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Martini ◽  
Roberta Bardini ◽  
Stefano Di Carlo

The mammalian cortex contains a great variety of neuronal cells. In particular, GABAergic interneurons, which play a major role in neuronal circuit function, exhibit an extraordinary diversity of cell types. In this regard, single-cell RNA-seq analysis is crucial to study cellular heterogeneity. To identify and analyze rare cell types, it is necessary to reliably label cells through known markers. In this way, all the related studies are dependent on the quality of the employed marker genes. Therefore, in this work, we investigate how a set of chosen inhibitory interneurons markers perform. The gene set consists of both immunohistochemistry-derived genes and single-cell RNA-seq taxonomy ones. We employed various human and mouse datasets of the brain cortex, consequently processed with the Monocle3 pipeline. We defined metrics based on the relations between unsupervised cluster results and the marker expression. Specifically, we calculated the specificity, the fraction of cells expressing, and some metrics derived from decision tree analysis like entropy gain and impurity reduction. The results highlighted the strong reliability of some markers but also the low quality of others. More interestingly, though, a correlation emerges between the general performances of the genes set and the experimental quality of the datasets. Therefore, the proposed method allows evaluating the quality of a dataset in relation to its reliability regarding the inhibitory interneurons cellular heterogeneity study.


1990 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 569-575 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Sykov/.a ◽  
P. Jendelov/.a ◽  
J. Svoboda ◽  
G. Sedman ◽  
K.T. Ng

1994 ◽  
Vol 197 (1) ◽  
pp. 295-308
Author(s):  
C H Johnson ◽  
Y Nakaoka ◽  
I Miwa

In some neural models of circadian rhythmicity, membrane potential and transmembrane flux of potassium and calcium ions appear to play important roles in the entrainment and central mechanisms of the biological clock. We wondered whether these cellular variables might be generally involved in circadian clocks, even non-neural clocks. Therefore, we tested the impact of changing extracellular potassium level on the circadian rhythm of photoaccumulation of Paramecium cells, whose membrane potential responds to changes of extracellular potassium in a manner similar to that of neurones. We found that pulse or step changes of extracellular potassium concentration did not phase-shift the circadian clock of P. bursaria cells in a phase-specific manner. Furthermore, modifying the extracellular concentration of calcium did not affect the magnitude of light-induced phase resetting. Therefore, while membrane potential and calcium fluxes may be crucial components of the circadian clock system in some organisms, especially in neural systems that involve intercellular communication, the P. bursaria data indicate that membrane potential changes are not necessarily an intrinsic component of circadian organization at the cellular level.


2016 ◽  
Vol 26 (08) ◽  
pp. 1650044 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lihua Wang ◽  
Suzie Dufour ◽  
Taufik A. Valiante ◽  
Peter L. Carlen

Seizure activity leads to increases in extracellular potassium concentration ([K[Formula: see text]]o), which can result in changes in neuronal passive and active membrane properties as well as in population activities. In this study, we examined how extracellular potassium modulates seizure activities using an acute 4-AP induced seizure model in the neocortex, both in vivo and in vitro. Moderately elevated [K[Formula: see text]]o up to 9[Formula: see text]mM prolonged seizure durations and shortened interictal intervals as well as depolarized the neuronal resting membrane potential (RMP). However, when [K[Formula: see text]]o reached higher than 9[Formula: see text]mM, seizure like events (SLEs) were blocked and neurons went into a depolarization-blocked state. Spreading depression was never observed as the blockade of ictal events could be reversed within 1–2[Formula: see text]min after the raised [K[Formula: see text]]o was changed back to control levels. This concentration-dependent dual effect of [K[Formula: see text]]o was observed using in vivo and in vitro mouse brain preparations as well as in human neocortical tissue resected during epilepsy surgery. Blocking the Ih current, mediated by hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels, modulated the elevated [K[Formula: see text]]o influence on SLEs by promoting the high [K[Formula: see text]]o inhibitory actions. These results demonstrate biphasic actions of raised [K[Formula: see text]]o on neuronal excitability and seizure activity.


1984 ◽  
Vol 112 (1) ◽  
pp. 179-197 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. E. Spira ◽  
Y. Yarom ◽  
D. Zeldes

Neuronal interactions mediated by alteration of the extracellular K+ concentration [K+]o occur between populations as well as among single neurones in very restricted regions. The interactions mediated by K+ ions may range from low efficacy ones (in which the effects of increased [K+]o around the non-active cells can be recorded only after massive activity of a large population of neurones) to very effective interactions (in which a single action potential in a neurone is sufficient to produce a depolarization of several mV in a second one). Such efficient K+-mediated interactions cannot be unequivocally distinguished by shape, amplitude or time course from postsynaptic responses induced by chemical or electrotonic synapses. We review here experiments which demonstrate various levels of interactions mediated by changes in potassium ion concentration. The giant axons (Gax) and non-giant axons from the central nervous system of the cockroach Periplaneta americana were used. The types of interactions discussed are: pathological interactions among populations of neurones induced by the convulsant drug picrotoxin; restricted and limited interactions which are the consequence of the combination of the special geometry of Gaxs and increases in extracellular K+; and finally, local and efficient interactions among Gaxs which are postulated to be mediated by K+ ions. The experiments described in this review, as well as others, demonstrate that the extracellular spaces in the CNS serve as predetermined pathways for K+-mediated neuronal communication. When the extracellular space between two adjacent neurones is very small, the K+-mediated interaction may resemble the PSPs of chemical or electrotonic synapses. It is possible that because of this resemblance, other K+-mediated interactions in the CNS have not been identified as such.


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