On this week's Journal Club session, Reinoud Maex will talk about his work in the presentation entitled "An analytical model of the energy of ion mixing in the brain".
Neurons store energy in the ionic concentration gradients they build between their cell interior and the extracellular space. They can subsequently use this energy to do work, such as charging their membrane capacitor, transporting metabolites across their cell membrane, etc. During hyperactivity or energy deprivation the ions mix and the neurons swell. In this presentation I will show how a single principle, namely that neurons try to maximize the energy stored, can explain three unrelated phenomena: a) why extracellular space occupies a volume fraction of about 20%, b) why neurons swell during energy deprivation, and c) why calcium ions are so heavily buffered.
Papers:
- R. Maex, "Effect of extracellular volume on the energy stored in transmembrane concentration gradients", 2021, Physical Review E, 104, 044409
- R. Maex, "An Isotonic Model of Neuron Swelling Based on Co-Transport of Salt and Water", 2023, Membranes, 13, 206
- R. Maex, "Energy optimisation predicts the capacity of ion buffering in the brain", 2023, Biological Cybernetics, 117, 467--484
Date: 2024/03/01
Time: 14:00
Location: C258 & online