Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
2076258 | Biosystems | 2011 | 9 Pages |
Abstract
Mathematical models of the excitatory synapse are furnishing valuable information about the synaptic response. Based on Brownian-diffusion of glutamate molecules, a synapse model was utilized to investigate the synaptic response on a femto-second time scale by the use of a parallel computer. In particular, the presence of fibrils crossing the synaptic cleft was simulated, which could have a role in shaping the brain activity. To this aim the model of synapse was modified by considering trans-synaptic filaments with diameters ranging from 7Â nm to 3Â nm, disposed on a grid with spacing of 14Â nm or 8Â nm. The simulation demonstrated that the presence of filaments induced an increase in the synaptic response, most likely linked to an increment in the probability of encounter between glutamate molecules and receptors. The increase was small - from 5 to 20%, but metabolic and functional considerations provide substantive hints about the importance of these small changes for brain activity. Moreover, it was shown that the presence of filaments made more stable the response of the synapse to random variations of pre-synaptic elements. Originated by these computational results, some inferences about the biological bases of mind diseases such as autism, mental retardation and schizophrenia, are reported in the Discussion.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Mathematics
Modelling and Simulation
Authors
Francesco Ventriglia,