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A diffusion-activation model of CaMKII translocation waves in dendrites

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Abstract

Ca2+-calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) is a key regulator of glutamatergic synapses and plays an essential role in many forms of synaptic plasticity. It has recently been observed that stimulating dendrites locally with a single glutamate/glycine puff induces a local translocation of CaMKII into spines that subsequently spreads in a wave-like manner towards the distal dendritic arbor. Here we present a mathematical model of the diffusion, activation and translocation of dendritic CaMKII. We show how the nonlinear dynamics of CaMKII diffusion-activation generates a propagating translocation wave, provided that the rate of activation is sufficiently fast. We also derive an explicit formula for the wave speed as a function of physiological parameters such as the diffusivity of CaMKII and the density of spines. Our model provides a quantitative framework for understanding the spread of CaMKII translocation and its possible role in heterosynaptic plasticity.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Science Foundation (DMS 0813677 and RTG 0354259).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mathematics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112-0090, USA

    Berton A. Earnshaw & Paul C. Bressloff

  2. Mathematical Institute, University of Oxford, 24–29 St. Giles’, Oxford, OX1 3LB, UK

    Paul C. Bressloff

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  1. Berton A. Earnshaw
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Correspondence to Paul C. Bressloff.

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Earnshaw, B.A., Bressloff, P.C. A diffusion-activation model of CaMKII translocation waves in dendrites. J Comput Neurosci 28, 77–89 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10827-009-0188-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10827-009-0188-9

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