On the possible effects of nanoparticles on neuronal feedback circuits: A modeling study

Nanotechnology is more and more attracting worldwide attention and is deemed to be one of the major future technologies, especially in medical sciences. For medical use, Nanoparticles (NPs) offer a wide spectrum of applications since they seem to be able to move through organic tissue without barriers. This can be beneficial on the one hand and can bear risks on the other. Nanotoxicity research has already set in, but there are still many open questions that have to be addressed. Based on our previous study of investigating some electrophysi-ological effects of NPs on neuronal cells, in this article we now integrate our results to possible effects of NPs on network dynamics: a theoretical model of thalamocortical interactions is used to detect changes in resonance processes due to NPs ”in silico”. The mathematical model is based on the Llinas model of cortico-subcortical neurodynamics. For this particular purpose, each single neuron model within a simplified thalamocortical circuit is described by an extended Hodgkin-Huxley type formalism (in which all ionic currents are considered to reproduce the main firing patterns observable in these neurons). We found differences of NP induced firing patterns in cortical pyramidal cells and interneurons by simulating NP interference in thalamic cells. Our simulation results suggest that NP in neuronal feedback circuits influence synchronization processes across multiple cortical areas and thus hindering the integration of multimodal information into a single cognitive event.