Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Neural Circuits01:25

Neural Circuits

1.0K
Neural circuits and neuronal pools are two of the main structures found in the nervous system. Neural circuits are networks of neurons that work together to carry out a specific task or process. They consist of interconnected neurons and glial cells, which provide structural and metabolic support.
Neuronal pools are collections of nerve cells with similar functions and interact through chemical and electrical signals. These pools include both interneurons (the central neural circuit nodes that...
1.0K
Neuronal Communication01:28

Neuronal Communication

777
Neurons, the fundamental units of the brain and nervous system, communicate through complex electrochemical signals that underpin all cognitive and bodily functions. This communication is primarily facilitated by a process involving the generation and propagation of an action potential along the axon of the neuron. When the internal electrical charge of a neuron surpasses a certain threshold, an action potential is triggered. This rapid change in voltage travels swiftly along the axon to the...
777
Interactions Between Signaling Pathways01:19

Interactions Between Signaling Pathways

6.2K
Signaling cascades usually lack linearity. Multiple pathways interact and regulate one another, allowing cells to integrate and respond to diverse environmental stimuli.
Convergence and divergence, and cross-talk between signaling pathways
Two distinct signaling pathways can converge on a single functional unit, which may either be a single protein or a complex of proteins. The response is either functionally distinct or synergistic between the two pathways but different from the response...
6.2K
The Role of Ion Channels in Neuronal Computation01:19

The Role of Ion Channels in Neuronal Computation

3.1K
A postsynaptic neuron usually receives numerous impulses from several other presynaptic neurons. The axon hillock of the postsynaptic neuron integrates all these signals and determines the likelihood of firing an action potential.
Sometimes a single EPSP is strong enough to induce an action potential in the postsynaptic neuron. However, multiple presynaptic inputs must often create EPSPs around the same time for the postsynaptic neuron to be sufficiently depolarized to fire an action potential....
3.1K
Electrical Synapses01:28

Electrical Synapses

8.2K
Electrical synapses found in all nervous systems play important and unique roles. In these synapses, the presynaptic and postsynaptic membranes are very close together (3.5 nm) and are actually physically connected by channel proteins forming gap junctions.
Gap junctions allow the current to pass directly from one cell to the next. In contrast, in the chemical synapse, the neurotransmitters carry the information through the synaptic cleft from one neuron to the next. They consist of two...
8.2K
Neuron Structure01:30

Neuron Structure

12.6K
Neurons are the main type of cell in the nervous system that generate and transmit electrochemical signals. They primarily communicate with each other using neurotransmitters at specific junctions called synapses. Neurons come in many shapes that often relate to their function, but most share three main structures: an axon and dendrites that extend out from a cell body.
Structure and Function of Neurons
The neuronal cell body—the soma— houses the nucleus and organelles vital to...
12.6K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Microfluidic platforms for probing spontaneous functional recovery in hierarchically modular neuronal networks.

Communications engineering·2026
Same author

Interfacial Structure and Reactions of Nanobubbles in Pure Ethanol.

Langmuir : the ACS journal of surfaces and colloids·2026
Same author

Lipid Membrane-Coated Nanopipettes for Enhanced Resistive Pulse Sensing of Exosomes.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2026
Same author

Online supervised learning of temporal patterns in biological neural networks under feedback control.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same author

Editorial: Bridging computation, biophysics, medicine, and engineering in neural circuits.

Frontiers in neural circuits·2026
Same author

Protocol for tailored in vitro neuronal networks on high-density microelectrode arrays with polydimethylsiloxane microstructures.

STAR protocols·2026

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 4, 2025

Design, Surface Treatment, Cellular Plating, and Culturing of Modular Neuronal Networks Composed of Functionally Inter-connected Circuits
10:32

Design, Surface Treatment, Cellular Plating, and Culturing of Modular Neuronal Networks Composed of Functionally Inter-connected Circuits

Published on: April 15, 2015

8.4K

Directional intermodular coupling enriches functional complexity in biological neuronal networks.

Nobuaki Monma1, Hideaki Yamamoto2, Naoya Fujiwara3

  • 1Research Institute of Electrical Communication (RIEC), Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan; Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.

Neural Networks : the Official Journal of the International Neural Network Society
|January 5, 2025
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers created structured neuronal networks in vitro to study brain organization. This approach revealed how directional connections improve network function and balance, offering insights into neural circuit dynamics.

Keywords:
AxonBioengineeringComputational neuroscienceNeuronal networkSpiking neural network

More Related Videos

Author Spotlight: Advancing Large-Scale Neural Dynamics Through HD-MEA Technology
09:44

Author Spotlight: Advancing Large-Scale Neural Dynamics Through HD-MEA Technology

Published on: March 8, 2024

4.6K
Author Spotlight: Modular Neuronal Networks for Analyzing Brain Functions
07:38

Author Spotlight: Modular Neuronal Networks for Analyzing Brain Functions

Published on: June 7, 2024

1.4K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 4, 2025

Design, Surface Treatment, Cellular Plating, and Culturing of Modular Neuronal Networks Composed of Functionally Inter-connected Circuits
10:32

Design, Surface Treatment, Cellular Plating, and Culturing of Modular Neuronal Networks Composed of Functionally Inter-connected Circuits

Published on: April 15, 2015

8.4K
Author Spotlight: Advancing Large-Scale Neural Dynamics Through HD-MEA Technology
09:44

Author Spotlight: Advancing Large-Scale Neural Dynamics Through HD-MEA Technology

Published on: March 8, 2024

4.6K
Author Spotlight: Modular Neuronal Networks for Analyzing Brain Functions
07:38

Author Spotlight: Modular Neuronal Networks for Analyzing Brain Functions

Published on: June 7, 2024

1.4K

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Systems Neuroscience
  • Bioengineering

Background:

  • Hierarchically modular organization is a conserved topology in animal nervous systems.
  • Cultured neurons typically form random networks, unlike in vivo systems with directional connections.
  • Understanding structure-function relationships in neural networks is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To reconstitute hierarchically modular neuronal networks in vitro using microfluidic devices.
  • To investigate the impact of directional connectivity on global network dynamics.
  • To bridge theoretical modeling with experimental data for understanding neural circuits.

Main Methods:

  • Fabrication of microfluidic devices to create structured neuronal cultures.
  • In vitro experiments to analyze network dynamics in reconstituted modules.
  • Spiking neural network (SNN) modeling to simulate and analyze network behavior.
  • Analytical prediction of network dynamics using eigendecomposition of transition matrices.

Main Results:

  • Embedding directional connections in a pseudo-feedforward manner suppressed excessive synchrony.
  • Enhanced integration-segregation balance in cultured neuronal networks.
  • Modularity and directionality were shown to cooperate in shaping network dynamics.
  • Network dynamics statistics were analytically predicted based on topology.

Conclusions:

  • Bioengineering and cell culture technologies can reconstitute complex neural circuitry.
  • Directional connectivity is essential for achieving functional network dynamics.
  • The study provides a framework for understanding structure-function relationships in biological neural networks.