Calcium waves in retinal glial cells

Calcium signals were recorded from glial cells in acutely isolated rat retina to determine whether Ca²⁺ waves occur in glial cells of intact central nervous system tissue. Chemical (adenosine triphosphate), electrical, and mechanical stimulation of astrocytes initiated increases in the intracellular concentration of Ca²⁺ that propagated at ~23 micrometers per second through astrocytes and Muller cells as intercellular waves. The Ca²⁺ waves persisted in the absence of extracellular Ca²⁺ but were largely abolished by thapsigargin and intracellular heparin, indicating that Ca²⁺ was released from intracellular stores. The waves did not evoke changes in cell membrane potential but traveled synchronously in astrocytes and Muller cells, suggesting a functional linkage between these two types of glial cells. Such glial Ca²⁺ waves may constitute an extraneuronal signaling pathway in the central nervous system.