Astrocyte-induced firing in primary afferent axons

Abstract

The mesencephalic trigeminal nucleus is unique in that it contains the cell bodies of large-caliber primary afferents that are usually located in the periphery in the dorsal root ganglia or trigeminal ganglia. The activity of these afferents is typically associated with proprioception of the jaw-closing muscles or mechanoreception on the teeth and periodontal ligament. However, like other large-caliber afferents from the body which display ectopic firing in neuropathic pain models, these afferents exhibit increased excitability and ectopic discharges even in a relatively mild muscle pain model. These discharges normally emerge from subthreshold membrane oscillations (SMOs) supported by a persistent sodium current (INaP) which is exquisitely sensitive to extracellular Ca2+-decreases. We have shown in the trigeminal main sensory nucleus that the release of a Ca2+-binding astrocytic protein, S100{beta}, is sufficient to modulate this sodium current. Here, we explore if this astrocyte-dependent mechanism contributes to emergence of this hyperexcitability and aim to localize the cellular site where ectopic discharge may arise using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings, confocal imaging, and immunohistochemistry methods on mice brain slices. We found that astrocytes, by lowering [Ca2+]e at focal points along the axons of NVmes neurons through S100{beta}, enhance the amplitude of the NaV1.6-dependent SMOs leading to ectopic firing. These findings suggest a crucial role for astrocytes in excitability regulation and raise questions about this neuron-astrocyte interaction as a key contributor to hyperexcitability in several pathologies.