The effect of spatially inhomogeneous extracellular electric fields on neurons.
The cooperative action of neurons and glia generates electrical fields, but their effect on individual neurons via ephaptic interactions is mostly unknown. Here, we analyze the impact of spatially inhomogeneous electric fields on the membrane potential, the induced membrane field, and the induced current source density of one-dimensional cables as well as morphologically realistic neurons and discuss how the features of the extracellular field affect these quantities. We show through simulations that endogenous fields, associated with hippocampal theta and sharp waves, can greatly affect spike timing. These findings imply that local electric fields, generated by the cooperative action of brain cells, can influence the timing of neural activity.
Division of Biology, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA. costas@caltech.edu
Costas A
CA
Anastassiou
Sean M
SM
Montgomery
Mauricio
M
Barahona
György
G
Buzsáki
Christof
C
Koch
D004574:Electromagnetic Fields; D005110:Extracellular Space / Q000502:physiology*; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000502:physiology*; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D008959:Models, Neurological; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000378:metabolism*; D017966:Pyramidal Cells / Q000378:metabolism*