Feed-forward and Feedback Control in Astrocytes for Ca²⁺-based Molecular Communications Nanonetworks

Abstract

Abstract-Synapses plasticity depends on the gliotransmitters' concentration in the synaptic channel. And, an abnormal concentration of gliotransmitters is linked to neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Epilepsy. In this paper, a theoretical investigation of the cause of the abnormal concentration of gliotransmitters and how to achieve its control are presented through a Ca 2+ -signalling-based molecular communications framework. A feed-forward and feedback control technique is used to manipulate IP3 values to stabilise the concentration of Ca 2+ inside the astrocytes. The theoretical analysis of the given model aims i) to stabilize the Ca 2+ concentration around a particular desired level in order to prevent abnormal gliotransmitters' concentration (extremely high or low concentration can result in neurodegeneration), ii) to improve the molecular communication performance that utilises Ca 2+ signalling, and maintain gliotransmitters' regulation remotely. It shows that the refractory periods from Ca 2+ can be maintained to lower the noise propagation resulting in smaller time-slots for bit transmission, which can also improve the delay and gain performances. The proposed approach can potentially lead to novel nanomedicine solutions for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, where a combination of nanotechnology and gene therapy approaches can be used to elicit the regulated Ca 2+ signalling in astrocytes, ultimately improving neuronal activity.

Neurosciences and Wireless Networks: The Potential of Brain-Type Communications and Their Applications

“…The research area of molecular communications promotes the usage of molecules as carriers for interactions between implantable-implantable and between implantable-biological systems [91]. Increased biocompatibility is thus reached when understanding and using molecules that are currently being used in biological systems, now with the purpose of controllable biological communication [92]. This infrastructure is envisioned to bridge to the Internet by means of synthetic biology and advanced nanotechnology, where electromagnetic-molecular signal translation is performed toward remote digital control of the internal cellular process of either Eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells.…”

Avaliação da Influência da Valinomicina via Bomba de Na⁺/K⁺ na Comunicação Molecular por Sinalização de Ca²⁺ em Astrócitos

“…O modelo de comunicação molecular desenvolvido por este trabalho foi adaptado do sistema idealizado por [11], que simulou um tecido tridimensional de astrócitos onde são transmitidas moléculas de Ca 2+ no meio intracelular [15], caracterizando-se, portanto, como um sistema puramente de sinalização de Ca 2+ . A comunicação acontece por um processo de difusão baseado em junções comunicantes (gap junctions), que são canais estruturados na membrana celular de duas células adjacentes, por onde se propagam as informações em um regime estocástico que depende da probabilidade dos estados dessas junções (fechado ou aberto) [3].…”

Engineering calcium signaling of astrocytes for neural–molecular computing logic gates

“…Therefore, engineering molecular communication between the cells through engineered genetic circuits can not only produce logic gates with multiple computational functions, but can enable reconfigurability of the logic operations [15][16][17][18] . Molecular communication is an emerging paradigm that aims to characterize as well as engineer biological communication systems using communication engineering theory in conjunction with synthetic biology [19][20][21][22] . Synthetic circuits to control molecular communications use ligand-responsive transgene systems that can respond to a particular stimulus 12,23,24 ; this can enable reconfiguration when specific signalling molecules activate the circuit.…”