Tripartite synapse

[3] The term was first introduced in the late 1990s to account for a growing body of evidence that glia are not merely passive neuronal support cells but, instead, play an active role in the integration of synaptic information through bidirectional communication with the neuronal components of the synapse as mediated by neurotransmitters and gliotransmitters.

[4] Evidence for the role of astrocytes in the integration and processing of synaptic integration presents itself in a number of ways: In a 2013 published research study titled Glutamate-Dependent Neuroglial Calcium Signaling Differ Between Young and Adult Brain, it was found that the tripartite synapse is not found in the adult brain.

Earlier published research had discussed how astrocytes had metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5)–dependent increases in cytosolic calcium ions (Ca2+).

It has not, which tells us that with so many labs work on this for 20 years that there must be something wrong.She also stated that:Our findings demonstrate that the tripartite synaptic model is incorrect.

This concept does not represent the process for transmitting signals between neurons in the brain beyond the developmental stage.In collaboration with the University of Rochester’s Institute of Optics, Nedergaard and her team had developed a new 2-photon microscope that had allowed researchers to observe glia activity in the living brain, which allowed observable data for the study.