title: Calcium imaging reveals glial involvement in transcranial direct current stimulation-induced plasticity in mouse brain.
abstract: Transcranical direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a treatment known to ameliorate various neurological conditions and enhance memory and cognition in humans. tDCS has gained traction for its potential therapeutic value; however, little is known about its mechanism of action. Using a transgenic mouse expressing G-CaMP7 in astrocytes and a subpopulation of excitatory neurons, we find that tDCS induces large-amplitude astrocytic Ca(2+) surges across the entire cortex with no obvious changes in the local field potential. Moreover, sensory evoked cortical responses are enhanced after tDCS. These enhancements are dependent on the alpha-1 adrenergic receptor and are not observed in IP3R2 (inositol trisphosphate receptor type 2) knockout mice, in which astrocytic Ca(2+) surges are absent. Together, we propose that tDCS changes the metaplasticity of the cortex through astrocytic Ca(2+)/IP3 signalling.
authors.affiliation: RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiromu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Monai
authors.affiliation: Brain Science Institute, Saitama University, Saitama 338-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Masamichi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ohkura
authors.affiliation: RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors.forename: Mika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.affiliation: RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Oe
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurophysiology and Neural Repair, Gunma University Graduate School of Medicine, Maebashi, Gunma 371-8511, Japan.
authors.forename: Ayumu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Konno
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurophysiology and Neural Repair, Gunma University Graduate School of Medicine, Maebashi, Gunma 371-8511, Japan.
authors.forename: Hirokazu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hirai
authors.affiliation: RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors.forename: Katsuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mikoshiba
authors.affiliation: RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors.forename: Shigeyoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Itohara
authors.affiliation: Brain Science Institute, Saitama University, Saitama 338-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Junichi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Nakai
authors.affiliation: RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors.forename: Youichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Iwai
authors.affiliation: RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.|Brain Science Institute, Saitama University, Saitama 338-8570, Japan.
authors.forename: Hajime
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3806-6905
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hirase
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000378:metabolism*; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D020013:Calcium Signaling / Q000502:physiology*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D005071:Evoked Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D053496:Inositol 1,4,5-Trisphosphate Receptors / Q000235:genetics; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000378:metabolism; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000502:physiology*; D061848:Optical Imaging; D018340:Receptors, Adrenergic, alpha-1 / Q000235:genetics; D065908:Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation
chemical_list: D053496:Inositol 1,4,5-Trisphosphate Receptors; C580990:Ip3r2 protein, mouse; D018340:Receptors, Adrenergic, alpha-1; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D002118:Calcium