Enhanced communication during prolonged stimulation is detrimental to the synchronization of neural cells*

In multicellular organisms, collective chemosensing via intercellular communication pathways endows cell clusters with the capacity to encode complex information and exhibit coordinated multicellular dynamics, such as intercellular synchronization. In our previous study, we demonstrated that temporal signals from the environment, in conjunction with the level of intercellular communication, guide the self-organization and communication dynamics of multicellular systems.In this project, we aim to utilize the micropatterning technique

for precise control over the shape of the KTaR-1 cell monolayer, creating ’barriers’ that prevent the formation of gap junctions. This approach enables us to manipulate intercellular communication strength with higher precision compared to chemical treatments. The experimental results suggest that at long-period stimulation, enhanced communication

strength resulted in weaker synchronization, as confirmed by cross-correlation analysis. Conversely, at short periods, communication strength showed a positive correlation with synchronization strength. Additionally, we conducted an analysis on a communication-deficient monolayer composed of a mixture of normal cells and connexin 43 protein knockout cells. This communication-deficient monolayer exhibited reduced synchronization behavior during short-period stimulation compared to normal monolayers composed solely of normal cells. However, it displayed improved synchronization during long-period stimulation. The results obtained from both the micropatterning and monolayer experiments are consistent and reinforce each other.