From a glial syncytium to a more restricted and specific glial networking

In the brain, glia represents the cell population that expresses the highest level of connexins, the membrane protein constituents of gap junction channels and hemichannels. This statement has initially led to propose the existence of a glial syncytium. Since then, functional studies have established that connexin channel-mediated communication between glial cells was more restricted and plastic that primarily thought. In particular, this is the case for astrocytes that form functional networks of communicating cells. Altogether these findings lead to reconsider the interaction between neurons and glia that should not be solely studied at the single cell level but also at a more integrated level as the interplay between neuronal circuits and glial networks.

► Connexins form gap junctions and hemichannels in brain cells.
► Gap junction-mediated networking exists among different brain glial cell populations.
► Astrocytes express in the highest amount connexins that serve as the center of glial networks.
► Astrogial networks have defined spatial organization and plasticity.
► Neuroglial communication exists at a network level.