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Astrocytes and synaptic plasticity in health and disease

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Abstract

Activity-dependent synaptic plasticity phenomena such as long-term potentiation and long-term depression are candidate mechanisms for storing information in the brain. Regulation of synaptic plasticity is critical for healthy cognition and learning and this is provided in part by metaplasticity, which can act to maintain synaptic transmission within a dynamic range and potentially prevent excitotoxicity. Metaplasticity mechanisms also allow neurons to integrate plasticity-associated signals over time. Interestingly, astrocytes appear to be critical for certain forms of synaptic plasticity and metaplasticity mechanisms. Synaptic dysfunction is increasingly viewed as an early feature of AD that is correlated with the severity of cognitive decline, and the development of these pathologies is correlated with a rise in reactive astrocytes. This review focuses on the contributions of astrocytes to synaptic plasticity and metaplasticity in normal tissue, and addresses whether astroglial pathology may lead to aberrant engagement of these mechanisms in neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by grants from the Neurological Foundation of N.Z. and the Health Research Council of N.Z. A Singh was supported by a University of Otago doctoral scholarship. The authors thank Dr. O Jones for helpful comments and discussions.

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  1. Department of Psychology, Brain Health Research Centre, Brain Research New Zealand, University of Otago, Box 56, Dunedin, 9054, New Zealand

    A. Singh & Wickliffe C. Abraham

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Singh, A., Abraham, W.C. Astrocytes and synaptic plasticity in health and disease. Exp Brain Res 235, 1645–1655 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-017-4928-1

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