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The Journal of Neuroscience, May 14, 2008, 28(20):5207-5217; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5100-07.2008

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Cellular/Molecular
Gap Junction-Mediated Astrocytic Networks in the Mouse Barrel Cortex

Vanessa Houades,^1,2 Annette Koulakoff,^1,2 Pascal Ezan,^1,2 Isabelle Seif,³ and Christian Giaume^1,2

¹Inserm, U840, and ²Collège de France, 75005 Paris, France, and ³Université Paris-Sud, EA 3544, 92296 Chatenay-Malabry, France

Correspondence should be addressed to Dr. Christian Giaume, Inserm, U840, Collège de France, 11 Place Marcelin Berthelot, 75005 Paris, France. Email: christian.giaume{at}college-de-france.fr

The barrel field of the somatosensory cortex constitutes a well documented example of anatomofunctional compartmentalization and activity-dependent interaction between neurons and astrocytes. In astrocytes, intercellular communication through gap junction channels composed by connexin 43 and 30 underlies a network organization. Immunohistochemical and electrophysiological experiments were undertaken to determine the coupling properties of astrocyte networks in layer IV of the developing barrel cortex. The expression of both connexins was found to be enriched within barrels compared with septa and other cortical layers. Combination of dye-coupling experiments performed with biocytin and immunostaining with specific cell markers demonstrated that astrocytic networks do not involve neurons, oligodendrocytes or NG2 cells. The shape of dye coupling was oval in the barrel cortex whereas it was circular in layer IV outside the barrel field. Two-dimensional analysis of these coupling areas indicated that gap junctional communication was restricted from a barrel to its neighbor. Such enrichment of connexin expression and transversal restriction were not observed in a transgenic mouse lacking the barrel organization, whereas they were both observed in a double-transgenic mouse with restored barrels. Direct observation of sulforhodamine B spread indicated that astrocytes located between two barrels were either weakly or not coupled, whereas coupling within a barrel was oriented toward its center. These observations indicated a preferential orientation of coupling inside the barrels resulting from subpopulations of astrocytes with different coupling properties that contribute to shaping astrocytic networks. Such properties confine intercellular communication in astrocytes within a defined barrel as previously reported for excitatory neuronal circuits.

Key words: connexin; astrocytes; somatosensory cortex; neuroglial interaction; barrel; gap junction

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Received Nov. 16, 2007; revised March 5, 2008; accepted April 7, 2008.

Correspondence should be addressed to Dr. Christian Giaume, Inserm, U840, Collège de France, 11 Place Marcelin Berthelot, 75005 Paris, France. Email: christian.giaume{at}college-de-france.fr

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. Giaume, M. Maravall, E. Welker, and G. Bonvento The Barrel Cortex as a Model to Study Dynamic Neuroglial Interaction Neuroscientist, August 1, 2009; 15(4): 351 - 366. [Abstract] [PDF]

				I. Maezawa, S. Swanberg, D. Harvey, J. M. LaSalle, and L.-W. Jin Rett Syndrome Astrocytes Are Abnormal and Spread MeCP2 Deficiency through Gap Junctions J. Neurosci., April 22, 2009; 29(16): 5051 - 5061. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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