Astrocytic Ion Dynamics: Implications for Potassium Buffering and Liquid Flow

We review modeling of astrocyte ion dynamics with a specific focus on the implications of so-called spatial potassium buffering, where excess potassium in the extracellular space (ECS) is transported away to prevent pathological neural spiking. The recently introduced Kirchoff-Nernst-Planck (KNP) scheme for modeling ion dynamics in astrocytes (and brain tissue in general) is outlined and used to study such spatial buffering. We next describe how the ion dynamics of astrocytes may regulate microscopic liquid flow by osmotic effects and how such microscopic flow can be linked to whole-brain macroscopic flow. We thus include the key elements in a putative multiscale theory with astrocytes linking neural activity on a microscopic scale to macroscopic fluid flow.Comment: 27 pages, 7 figure

Transparent and flexible fingerprint sensor array with multiplexed detection of tactile pressure and skin temperature

We developed a transparent and flexible, capacitive fingerprint sensor array with multiplexed, simultaneous detection of tactile pressure and finger skin temperature for mobile smart devices. In our approach, networks of hybrid nanostructures using ultra-long metal nanofibers and finer nanowires were formed as transparent, flexible electrodes of a multifunctional sensor array. These sensors exhibited excellent optoelectronic properties and outstanding reliability against mechanical bending. This fingerprint sensor array has a high resolution with good transparency. This sensor offers a capacitance variation ~17 times better than the variation for the same sensor pattern using conventional ITO electrodes. This sensor with the hybrid electrode also operates at high frequencies with negligible degradation in its performance against various noise signals from mobile devices. Furthermore, this fingerprint sensor array can be integrated with all transparent forms of tactile pressure sensors and skin temperature sensors, to enable the detection of a finger pressing on the display