Distinctive biophysical features of human cell-types: insights from studies of neurosurgically resected brain tissue

Homeira Moradi Chameh; Madeleine Falby; Madeleine Falby; Mandana Movahed; Keon Arbabi; Keon Arbabi; Scott Rich; Liang Zhang; Jérémie Lefebvre; Jérémie Lefebvre; Jérémie Lefebvre; Shreejoy J. Tripathy; Shreejoy J. Tripathy; Shreejoy J. Tripathy; Maurizio De Pittà; Maurizio De Pittà; Maurizio De Pittà; Maurizio De Pittà; Taufik A. Valiante; Taufik A. Valiante; Taufik A. Valiante; Taufik A. Valiante; Taufik A. Valiante; Taufik A. Valiante; Taufik A. Valiante

doi:10.3389/fnsyn.2023.1250834

Frontiers in Synaptic Neuroscience (Oct 2023)

Distinctive biophysical features of human cell-types: insights from studies of neurosurgically resected brain tissue

Homeira Moradi Chameh,
Madeleine Falby,
Madeleine Falby,
Mandana Movahed,
Keon Arbabi,
Keon Arbabi,
Scott Rich,
Liang Zhang,
Jérémie Lefebvre,
Jérémie Lefebvre,
Jérémie Lefebvre,
Shreejoy J. Tripathy,
Shreejoy J. Tripathy,
Shreejoy J. Tripathy,
Maurizio De Pittà,
Maurizio De Pittà,
Maurizio De Pittà,
Maurizio De Pittà,
Taufik A. Valiante,
Taufik A. Valiante,
Taufik A. Valiante,
Taufik A. Valiante,
Taufik A. Valiante,
Taufik A. Valiante,
Taufik A. Valiante

Affiliations

Homeira Moradi Chameh: Division of Clinical and Computational Neuroscience, Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network (UHN), Toronto, ON, Canada
Madeleine Falby: Division of Clinical and Computational Neuroscience, Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network (UHN), Toronto, ON, Canada
Madeleine Falby: Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Mandana Movahed: Division of Clinical and Computational Neuroscience, Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network (UHN), Toronto, ON, Canada
Keon Arbabi: Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Keon Arbabi: Krembil Centre for Neuroinformatics, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada
Scott Rich: Neurosciences and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada
Liang Zhang: Division of Clinical and Computational Neuroscience, Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network (UHN), Toronto, ON, Canada
Jérémie Lefebvre: Division of Clinical and Computational Neuroscience, Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network (UHN), Toronto, ON, Canada
Jérémie Lefebvre: Department of Biology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada
Jérémie Lefebvre: Department of Mathematics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Shreejoy J. Tripathy: Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Shreejoy J. Tripathy: Krembil Centre for Neuroinformatics, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada
Shreejoy J. Tripathy: Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Maurizio De Pittà: Division of Clinical and Computational Neuroscience, Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network (UHN), Toronto, ON, Canada
Maurizio De Pittà: Department of Physiology, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Maurizio De Pittà: Basque Center for Applied Mathematics, Bilbao, Spain
Maurizio De Pittà: 0Faculty of Medicine, University of the Basque Country, Leioa, Spain
Taufik A. Valiante: Division of Clinical and Computational Neuroscience, Krembil Brain Institute, University Health Network (UHN), Toronto, ON, Canada
Taufik A. Valiante: Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Taufik A. Valiante: 1Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Taufik A. Valiante: 2Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Taufik A. Valiante: 3Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Taufik A. Valiante: 4Center for Advancing Neurotechnological Innovation to Application (CRANIA), Toronto, ON, Canada
Taufik A. Valiante: 5Max Planck-University of Toronto Center for Neural Science and Technology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fnsyn.2023.1250834
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 15

Abstract

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Electrophysiological characterization of live human tissue from epilepsy patients has been performed for many decades. Although initially these studies sought to understand the biophysical and synaptic changes associated with human epilepsy, recently, it has become the mainstay for exploring the distinctive biophysical and synaptic features of human cell-types. Both epochs of these human cellular electrophysiological explorations have faced criticism. Early studies revealed that cortical pyramidal neurons obtained from individuals with epilepsy appeared to function “normally” in comparison to neurons from non-epilepsy controls or neurons from other species and thus there was little to gain from the study of human neurons from epilepsy patients. On the other hand, contemporary studies are often questioned for the “normalcy” of the recorded neurons since they are derived from epilepsy patients. In this review, we discuss our current understanding of the distinct biophysical features of human cortical neurons and glia obtained from tissue removed from patients with epilepsy and tumors. We then explore the concept of within cell-type diversity and its loss (i.e., “neural homogenization”). We introduce neural homogenization to help reconcile the epileptogenicity of seemingly “normal” human cortical cells and circuits. We propose that there should be continued efforts to study cortical tissue from epilepsy patients in the quest to understand what makes human cell-types “human”.

Published in Frontiers in Synaptic Neuroscience

ISSN: 1663-3563 (Online)
Publisher: Frontiers Media S.A.
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Medicine: Internal medicine: Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Website: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/synaptic-neuroscience

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