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Functional strengthening through synaptic scaling upon connectivity disruption in neuronal cultures

Estevez-Priego, E.; Teller, S.; Arenas, A.; Soriano, J.; Granell, C.

Abstract

An elusive phenomenon in network neuroscience is the extent of neuronal activity remodeling upon damage. Here, we investigate the action of gradual synaptic blockade on the effective connectivity in cortical networks in vitro. We use two neuronal cultures configurations—one formed by about 130 neuronal aggregates and another one formed by about 600 individual neurons—and monitor their spontaneous activity upon progressive weakening of excitatory connectivity. We report that the effective connectivity in all cultures exhibits a first phase of transient strengthening followed by a second phase of steady deterioration. We quantify these phases by measuring GEFF, the global efficiency in processing network information. We term hyperefficiency the sudden strengthening of GEFF upon network deterioration, which increases by 20–50% depending on culture type. Relying on numerical simulations we reveal the role of synaptic scaling, an activity–dependent mechanism for synaptic plasticity, in counteracting the perturbative action, neatly reproducing the observed hyperefficiency. Our results demonstrate the importance of synaptic scaling as resilience mechanism. Author Summary Neuronal circuits exhibit homeostatic plasticity mechanisms to cope with perturbations or damage. A central mechanism is ‘synaptic scaling,’ a self-organized response in which the strength of neurons’ excitatory synapses is adjusted to compensate for activity variations. Here we present experiments in which the excitatory connectivity of in vitro cortical networks is progressively weakened through chemical action. The spontaneous activity and effective connectivity of the whole network is monitored as degradation progresses, and the capacity of the network for broad information communication is quantified through the global efficiency. We observed that the network responded to the perturbation by strengthening the effective connectivity, reaching a hyperefficient state for moderate perturbations. The study proves the importance of ‘synaptic scaling’ as a driver for functional reorganization and network-wide resilience. Estevez-Priego, E.; Teller, S.; Granell, C.; Arenas, A.; Soriano, J.

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RESEARCH Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling upon connec i i y dis up ion in neu onal cul u es Es e anía Es é ez-P iego1,2, Sa a Telle 1,2, Cla a G anell3,4, Alex A enas5, and Jo di So iano 1,2 1Depa amen de Física de la Ma è ia Condensada, Uni e si a de Ba celona, Ba celona, Spain 2Uni e si a de Ba celona Ins i u e o Complex Sys ems (UBICS), Ba celona, Spain 3GOTHAM Lab – Ins i u e o Biocompu a ion and Physics o Complex Sys ems (BIFI), Uni e si y o Za agoza, Za agoza, Spain 4Depa men o Condensed Ma e Physics, Uni e si y o Za agoza, Za agoza, Spain 5Depa amen d’Enginye ia In o mà ica i Ma emà iques, Uni e si a Ro i a i Vi gili, Ta agona, Spain Keywo ds: Neu onal cul u es, Calcium imaging, CNQX, E ec i e connec i i y, Global e iciency, Func ional o ganiza ion, Synap ic scaling ABSTRACT An elusi e phenomenon in ne wo k neu oscience is he ex en o neu onal ac i i y emodeling upon damage. He e, we in es iga e he ac ion o g adual synap ic blockade on he e ec i e connec i i y in co ical ne wo ks in i o. We use wo neu onal cul u es con igu a ions—one o med by abou 130 neu onal agg ega es and ano he one o med by abou 600 indi idual neu ons—and moni o hei spon aneous ac i i y upon p og essi e weakening o exci a o y connec i i y. We epo ha he e ec i e connec i i y in all cul u es exhibi s a i s phase o ansien s eng hening ollowed by a second phase o s eady de e io a ion. We quan i y hese phases by measu ing GEFF, he global e iciency in p ocessing ne wo k in o ma ion. We e m hype e iciency he sudden s eng hening o GEFF upon ne wo k de e io a ion, which inc eases by 20–50% depending on cul u e ype. Relying on nume ical simula ions we e eal he ole o synap ic scaling, an ac i i y–dependen mechanism o synap ic plas ici y, in coun e ac ing he pe u ba i e ac ion, nea ly ep oducing he obse ed hype e iciency. Ou esul s demons a e he impo ance o synap ic scaling as esilience mechanism. AUTHOR SUMMARY Neu onal ci cui s exhibi homeos a ic plas ici y mechanisms o cope wi h pe u ba ions o damage. A cen al mechanism is ‘synap ic scaling,’ a sel -o ganized esponse in which he s eng h o neu ons’ exci a o y synapses is adjus ed o compensa e o ac i i y a ia ions. He e we p esen expe imen s in which he exci a o y connec i i y o in i o co ical ne wo ks is p og essi ely weakened h ough chemical ac ion. The spon aneous ac i i y and e ec i e connec i i y o he whole ne wo k is moni o ed as deg ada ion p og esses, and he capaci y o he ne wo k o b oad in o ma ion communica ion is quan i ied h ough he global e iciency. We obse ed ha he ne wo k esponded o he pe u ba ion by s eng hening he e ec i e connec i i y, eaching a hype e icien s a e o mode a e pe u ba ions. The s udy p o es he impo ance o ‘synap ic scaling’ as a d i e o unc ional eo ganiza ion and ne wo k-wide esilience. a n o p e n a c c e s s j o u n a l Ci a ion: Es é ez-P iego, E., Telle , S., G anell, C., A enas, A., & So iano, J. (2020). Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling upon connec i i y dis up ion in neu onal cul u es. Ne wo k Neu oscience, 4(4), 1160–1180. h ps://doi.o g/10.1162 /ne n_a_00156 DOI: h ps://doi.o g/10.1162/ne n_a_00156 Recei ed: 16 Janua y 2020 Accep ed: 15 July 2020 Compe ing In e es s: The au ho s ha e decla ed ha no compe ing in e es s exis . Co esponding Au ho : Jo di So iano [email p o ec ed] Handling Edi o : Ola Spo ns Copy igh : ©2020 Massachuse s Ins i u e o Technology Published unde a C ea i e Commons A ibu ion 4.0 In e na ional (CC BY 4.0) license The MIT P ess Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling INTRODUCTION Response o pe u ba ions o damage in li ing neu onal ci cui s is a cen al ye un esol ed p oblem in neu oscience. A simple ne wo k desc ip ion o damage in ui i ely sugges s ha he ailu e o connec i i y pa hways p ecipi a es a p og essi e de e io a ion o ne wo k ac i i y ha ul ima ely comp omises he unc ionali y o he sys em. Realis ic desc ip ions o li ing neu- onal ci cui s, howe e , expose he complex in e play be ween he physical a chi ec u e o he ne wo k, neu onal dynamics, and plas ici y mechanisms in go e ning ci cui beha io , aming scena ios in which esponse o damage is no only possible, bu as and ne wo kwide. This is pa icula ly impo an in he con ex o b ain and neu ological diso de s, since adequa e p ognosis o unc ional al e a ions may help o elucida e ac ions o s op o e e damage. S udies in s oke, o ins ance, ha e poin ed ou he impo an ole o plas ici y in p e en - ing a cascade o deg ada ion and os e ing eco e y (Calab esi, Cen onze, Pisani, Cupini, & Be na di, 2003;Mu phy & Co be ,2009). Cu en mul idisciplina y app oaches o p ognosis a e making an e o o in eg a e acqui ed expe imen al da a wi h nume ical models o cha ac- e ize neu onal damage and subsequen ne wo k esponses (Basse & Spo ns,2017;Fo ni o, Zalesky, & B eakspea , 2015). Thus, unde s anding he di e en ac o s a play—connec i i y, dynamics, and plas ici y—and hei in e ela ion has become a cen al goal in medical ne wo k neu oscience. In he las ew yea s, subs an ial e o s ha e been in es ed in linking s uc u al cha ac e - is ics o neu onal ne wo ks wi h hei capaci y o cope wi h pe u ba ions and damage (Ae s, Fias, Caeyenbe ghs, & Ma inazzo, 2016;Fa ooq, Chen, Geo giou, Tannenbaum, & Lengle , 2019;Majdandzic e al.,2013). Speci ically o b ain unc ional ne wo ks, s udies un eiled he impo ance o modula and hie a chical o ganiza ions (Meunie , Lambio e, Fo ni o, E sche, & Bullmo e, 2009), hubs ( an den Heu el & Spo ns,2013), and o he node s uc u al aspec s (Basse & Spo ns,2017;Basse , Zu n, & Gold,2018;Spo ns,2014;S am,2014). Despi e he p og ess and enligh enmen in his di ec ion, he inco po a ion o plas ici y and sel - egula o y mechanisms as addi ional ac o s is opening new a enues o unde s anding esilience o in- Resilience: The capaci y o a neu onal ci cui o main ain ac i i y and unc ional cha ac e is ics upon loss o weakening o neu ons o connec ions. sul . Indeed, he b ain and o he li ing neu onal ci cui s a e elian on di e se adap i e mech- anisms o p ope pe o mance and s abili y ha include synap ic plas ici y and s uc u al Synap ic plas ici y: The s eng hening o weakening o synapses acco ding o neu onal ac i i y, o ins ance, o po en ia e speci ic connec i i y pa hways. plas ici y (Bu z, S eenbuck, & an Ooyen,2014;Fau h & Te zla ,2016;Fau h, Wö gö e , & Te zla , 2015). These mechanisms a e cen al o egain ci cui s’ ope abili y upon se e e pe - u ba ions o inju y (Ba al & Reyes,2016;Cos a, Mizusaki, Sjös öm, & an Rossum,2017; Ma de ,2011;Mu phy & Co be ,2009;Telle e al.,2019). One o he mos impo an synap ic plas ici y mechanisms is synap ic scaling, in which he s eng h o exci a o y synapses is ad- Synap ic scaling: A egula o y mechanism o neu onal ci cui s by which synap ic s eng h is adjus ed o compensa e o ch onic changes in ac i i y. jus ed o compensa e o a ia ions in ac i i y (Desai, Ru he o d, & Tu igiano,1999;Fong, Newman, Po e , & Wenne , 2015;G. G. Tu igiano, Leslie, Desai, Ru he o d, & Nelson, 1998). The capaci y o synap ic scaling o egula e neu onal ac i i y was demons a ed bo h in i o (Echegoyen, Neu, G abe , & Sol esz,2007;G. Tu igiano,2012;G. G. Tu igiano,2008) and in i o (Ba al & Reyes,2016;Hanes e al.,2020) a a synapse le el. Al hough di e - en in es iga ions poin ed ou he ole o synap ic scaling in co ec ing neu onal ac i i y a e damage, o ins ance in ela ion o Alzheime ’s pa ien s cogni i e de ici s (Bo ge-Hol hoe e , Mo eno, & A enas, 2011) and e inal lesions (Keck e al.,2013), he e a e no s udies demon- s a ing i s impac in he unc ional o ganiza ion o a neu onal ci cui . Func ional o ganiza ion: A se o global ne wo k ai s, such as modula i y o global e iciency, ha imp in dis inc o ganiza ional cha ac e is ics o a ne wo k. The aim o his s udy is o analyze he ac ion o synap ic scaling om a ne wo k neu osci- ence pe spec i e and expose i s po en ial as a esilience mechanism. To his end, we designed an expe imen al pipeline in which small co ical ci cui s in i o we e exposed o a mal unc ion- like e en ha g aduallyweakened he connec i i y among in e connec ed neu onal assemblies Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 161 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling (clus e s), and analyzed simul aneously he ac i i y o he en i e ne wo k. The pe u ba i e ac- ion was deli e ed h ough inc easing doses o CNQX, an AMPA-glu ama e ecep o an agonis CNQX (6-cyano-7-ni oquinoxaline- 2,3-dione): An agonis o AMPA-glu ama e ecep o s in exci a o y neu ons, equen ly used o ei he weaken exci a o y synap ic communica ion o block i en i ely. in exci a o y synapses (So iano, Ma ínez, Tlus y, and Moses,2008;Tibau, Valencia, & So iano, 2013a). Al hough CNQX a ge ed synap ic connec i i y, we measu ed solely i s impac on he spon aneous ac i i y, ha is, he spon aneous dynamic in e ac ions among clus e s. Func- ional cha ac e is ics o he cul u ed ne wo ks we e he e o e quan i ied by measu ing he al e - a ions in ac i i y as he blockade p og essed and by compu ing he global e iciency (La o a & Global e iciency: A measu e o ne wo k capaci y o in o ma ion exchange. The highe he o e all connec i i y among nodes, he highe he global e iciency. Ma chio i, 2001;Rubino & Spo ns,2010), a measu e o he in eg a ion o he low o in o ma- ion in a ne wo ked sys em. Ou expe imen s showed ha , as CNQX was applied, he e was an ini ial phase in which he global e iciency aised, e ealing an inc eased in o ma ion low capaci y in he ne wo k. This hype e iciency was ep oducible among ne wo k ealiza ions, Hype e iciency: In he con ex o ou wo k, an ab up inc ease o global e iciency esul ing om a s eng hening o e ec i e connec ions. al hough he le el o impac depended on cul u e de ails. Beyond his phase, global e iciency p og essi ely decayed un il ac i i y ceased. By using nume ical simula ions we showed ha synap ic scaling, simula ed as a local s eng hening o emaining e ec i e connec ions upon damage, was su icien o explain he expe imen al beha io . Simple models based on bond pe cola ion (Ki kpa ick,1973), ha is, he deg ada ion o dele ion o connec ions wi hou any Pe cola ion: Beha io o in o ma ion o o he measu e as nodes o connec ions a e emo ed, ypically sepa a ing a ‘connec ed’ and a ‘disconnec ed’ phase. scaling, ailed a cap u ing his hype e iciency phenomenon. To ou knowledge, he expe i- men s and modeling p esen ed he e is he i s s ong e idence o he impac o synap ic scaling in p ese ing ne wo k e iciency and whole-sys em pe o mance, hus exposing synap ic scal- ing as an in insic mechanism o esilience in li ing neu onal ne wo ks. Ou s udy s eng hens he ision o synap ic scaling as an eme gen and gene al p ope y o li ing neu onal ci cui s, and pa es he way owa d a be e p edic ion o he ac ion o pe u ba ions and damage in such ci cui s. RESULTS Weakening o Synap ic Communica ion Al e s Func ional O ganiza ion We in es iga ed spon aneous ac i i y in clus e ed neu onal cul u es p epa ed in 6-mm-diame e PDMS wells on glass, as illus a ed in Figu e 1A. These cul u es eme ged as a sel -o ganized p ocess in which he absence o adhesi e p o eins in he glass subs a e a o ed neu onal mobili y and agg ega ion (Sege , Ben enis e, Shapi a, & Ben-Jacob,2003;Telle e al.,2014; Telle , Tahi begi, Mi , Sami ie , & So iano,2015). By day in i o (DIV) 7 upon p epa a ion, agg ega ion shaped highly compac neu onal islands e med clus e s ha emained s able in posi ion and size. In ou expe imen s, abou 130 neu onal clus e s ypically o med in he 6-mm-diame e wells (Figu e 1B). Table 1 summa izes he se o ne wo ks in es iga ed and hei cha ac e is ics. The spon aneous ac i i y in he clus e ed ne wo ks was moni o ed a DIV 8–12 h ough calcium luo escence imaging (Figu e 1B), which allowed us o ollow he e o- lu ion o all clus e s in he cul u e wi h high spa ial and empo al esolu ion. Ac i e clus e s appea ed as b igh objec s whose luo escence in ensi y amped up upon ac i a ion. The ad- an age o clus e ed neu onal cul u es is ha hey exhibi spon aneous ac i i y wi h a ich spa io empo al s uc u e (Telle e al.,2014,2015), in which clus e s coac i a e in g oups o a ying size and iming (Figu e 1B–C). Since he s uc u e o coac i a ion pa e ns, and in u n ne wo k unc ional cha ac e is ics, is g ounded on he coupling among clus e s, hese cul u es s and ou as a pa icula ly sui ed expe imen al p epa a ion o in es iga e he impac o chemi- cal pe u ba ions o damage (Telle e al.,2014 ,2015,2019). The ichly s uc u ed dynamics o clus e ed ne wo ks—and sis e designs in he o m o enginee ed ci cui s (Kanne e al.,2015; Yamamo o e al.,2018)—is enligh ening since dynamics shape ne wo ks wi h a unc ional o - ganiza ion quali a i ely simila o ha o he b ain, wi h modula ai s and hubs (Telle e al., 2015;Yamamo o e al.,2018). Thus, ou clus e ed cul u es combine he con ollabili y and Ne wo k Neu oscience 1162 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling Figu e 1. Clus e ed neu onal cul u es and expe imen al p ocedu e. (A) Schema ic p epa a ion o clus e ed neu onal ne wo ks. Dissocia ed a co ical neu ons we e pla ed on a 6-mm-diame e PDMS wells. The absence o adhesi e p o eins acili a ed neu onal agg ega ion, gi ing ise o an assembly o neu onal islands (clus e s) by day in i o (DIV7). (B) Fluo escence image o a ypical neu onal cul u e. Ci cula objec s a e neu onal clus e s. Labels highligh ou he loca ion o ou clus e s whose luo escence aces a e shown in panel C. (C) Rep esen a i e luo escence aces o ou clus e s o g adually highe le els o he AMPA glu ama e ecep o an agonis CNQX. Sha p inc eases o he signal co espond o ac i i y e en s. Yellow boxes illus a e episodes o coo dina ed ac i i y. The o e all ac i i y o he clus e s dec eases wi h CNQX as a esul o he educed exci a o y d i e. DFF indica es no malized luo escence signal, gi en by DFF(%) = 100.(F−F0)/F−0, wi h F0 he luo escence signal a es . accessibili y o an in i o sys em wi h some o he dynamical ichness and unc ional com- plexi y o na u ally o med neu onal ci cui s. In ou expe imen s we we e in e es ed in analyzing he dynamics o a clus e ed ne wo k as he connec i i y s eng h among clus e s, and in u n hei dynamic coupling, was educed. The abili y o ou expe imen al sys em o simul aneously moni o he en i e ne wo k made i unique o in es iga e he ac ion o pe u ba ions and hei impac on ne wo k unc ional o ganiza ion. Since spon aneous coo dina ed ac i i y is mos ly media ed by he exci a o y d i e o AMPA-glu ama e ecep o s, bo h he capaci y o he ne wo k o i e and clus e - o-clus e synap ic coupling could be al e ed in a con olled manne h ough he blockade o AMPA ecep o s. Thus, ollowing So iano, Rod íguez Ma ínez, Tlus y, and Moses (2008), we a ge ed he exci a o y AMPA-glu ama e ecep o s wi h g adually highe doses o he an agonis CNQX, causing a p og essi e educ ion o spon aneous ac i i y un il i ceased. Fo cla i y in he analysis o he da a and i s in e p e a ion, NMDA exci a o y ecep o s (which accoun o abou 20% o Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 163 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling Table 1. Summa y o he s uc u al and dynamical cha ac e is ics o he eigh clus e ed ne wo ks in es iga ed. Expe imen DIV Nφ(µm)d(µm)a(bu s s/min) hki hwi 1 8 157 156 ±56 406 ±16 7.10 6.0 ±3.1 2.8 ±0.5 2 8 125 170 ±55 437 ±15 2.52 5.9 ±2.8 3.2 ±0.6 3 8 116 177 ±60 455 ±14 1.47 6.3 ±2.7 2.9 ±0.5 4 9 152 137 ±34 282 ±8 5.51 5.3 ±2.1 3.0 ±0.4 5 9 144 177 ±53 411 ±15 1.71 4.4 ±1.9 3.3 ±0.7 6 9 124 160 ±52 452 ±15 7.14 5.0 ±1.7 2.9 ±0.6 7 9 118 215 ±68 469 ±18 3.85 4.9 ±1.9 3.1 ±1.1 8 12 128 193 ±70 462 ±15 2.91 5.7 ±2.2 2.9 ±0.5 No e. DIV is he day in i o o he cul u e, N he numbe o clus e s, φ hei a e age diame e , d he ypical clus e s’ in e dis ance, a he a e age collec i e ac i i y, hki he a e age e ec i e connec i i y pe clus e , and hwi he a e age weigh o e ec i e connec ions. φ,d,hki, and hwi a e epo ed as he means ±s anda d de ia ions. he o al exci a o y d i e in co ical neu ons) and GABA inhibi o y ecep o s we e ully blocked wi h he co esponding an agonis s. An example o he impac o CNQX on ne wo k spon aneous ac i i y is shown in Figu e 1C. He e, he luo escence aces o ou ep esen a i e clus e s a e depic ed o g adually highe CNQX le els. Wi hou blockade, all ou clus e s exhibi ed a ich ac i i y wi h s ong coo di- na ion. As CNQX was applied, he le el o ac i i y and coo dina ion swi ly dec eased, and o ull synap ic blockade he clus e s ei he i ed weakly and independen ly o became silen . The all o spon aneous ac i i y and he b eakdown o clus e s’ coac i a ion pa e ns o he en i e ne wo k a e shown as as e plo s in Figu e 2A. In he plo s, he do s ma k he iming o clus e s’ ac i a ion, da a ha a e di ec ly ob ained om he analysis o he luo escence signal. In he sequence o as e plo s, [CNQX] =0(unpe u bed ne wo k) shapes a s ongly cohe en dynamics in which mos o he clus e s coac i a e a unison, a ea u e ha e lec s he s ong coupling among clus e s. The s eng h o spon aneous ac i i y was quan i ied h ough he col- lec i e ac i i y a, de ined as he equency o ac i i y episodes (bu s s) in which a leas i e clus- e s pa icipa ed (abou 5% o he ne wo k). Ac i i y awas high o [CNQX] =0, wi h clus e s exhibi ing abou 7 bu s s/min. Ac i i y se e ely d opped o abou 4.4 bu s s/min o he small pe u ba ion wi h [CNQX] =60 nM, which was accompanied by a s ong dis up ion o he unison beha io , ende ing an o e all dynamic in which clus e s ac i a ed in g oups o a ying size. The decay in ac i i y accen ua ed as CNQX g ew, al hough some g oups o clus e s s ill main ained s ong coo dina ed ac i i y e en o ela i ely la ge doses o [CNQX] =600 nM. Spon aneous ac i i y inally s opped by [CNQX] &1, 000 nM. In ou s udy we in es iga ed a o al o eigh clus e ed ne wo ks. All o hem exhibi ed a simila quali a i e end, al hough he s uc u e o coo dina ed ac i i y and i s changes on deg ada ion depended on he clus e - o- clus e wi ing de ails in he cul u e (Table 1). Ac i i y da a was nex analyzed in de ail o compu e he e ec i e connec i i y o he ne - E ec i e connec i i y: Causal s a is ical ela ionship among he ac i i y pa e ns o neu ons in a ne wo k, leading o di ec ed and weigh ed adjacency connec i i y ma ices. wo ks, allowing us o quan i y whole-ne wo k al e a ions on CNQX ac ion. The e ec i e ne - wo ks (weigh ed and di ec ed) we e ex ac ed using ans e en opy, an app oach ha we showed app op ia e o neu onal cul u es in p e ious s udies (S e e , Ba aglia, So iano, & Geisel, 2012;Telle e al.,2014;Tibau, Ludl, Rüdige , O landi, & So iano,2020). F om he in e ed e ec i e ne wo ks we ex ac ed he global e iciency GEFF, which in o ms abou he capabili y o he ne wo k o ope a e as a whole. Fo cla i y, he global e iciency was always Ne wo k Neu oscience 1164 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling Figu e 2. Ne wo k ac i i y and unc ional o ganiza ion upon deg ada ion. (A) Rep esen a i e as e plo s o spon aneous ac i i y o g adually highe exci a o y blockade. Blue do s ma k he clus e s’ ac i a ions. The concen a ion o CNQX and he a e age collec i e spon aneous ac i i y aa e in- dica ed abo e each panel. Ras e s a e limi ed o 10 min o cla i y. (B) Co esponding e ec i e connec i i y ma ices. The b igh e he colo , he highe he connec i i y weigh among wo clus- e s. Ma ices a e o de ed acco ding o he unc ional communi ies a [CNQX] = 60 nM. The scaled global e iciency GEFF inc eases a [CNQX] = 60 nM o s eadily dec ease a e wa ds. (C) E ec i e connec i i y maps o pe u bed and con ol expe imen s. Clus e s’ and links’ colo s iden i y di e - en unc ional communi ies. Con ol expe imen s expe ienced he same expe imen al pipeline as pe u bed ones, bu only GABAAand NMDA ecep o s we e blocked. No signi ican al e a ions in he e ec i e connec i i y we e obse ed. The pe u bed expe imen co esponds o he da a shown in (A). scaled ela i e o i s alue in he unpe u bed condi ion. We no e ha he global e iciency is based on he calcula ion o he sho es opological pa hs among connec ed nodes in a ne - wo k, and ha o weigh ed ne wo ks he sho e pa hs a e hose wi h s onge weigh . Thus, an inc ease in GEFF can a ise om ei he a highe numbe o links, s onge weigh s, o bo h. Figu e 2B p o ides an example o he in e ed e ec i e connec i i y ma ices. A summa y o he a e age connec i i y hkiand a e age weigh hwi o he eigh s udied cul u es is p o ided Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 165 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling in Table 1. Func ional communi ies we e al eady p esen o [CNQX] =0, a ea u e ha in- dica es ha he obse ed coo dina ed ac i i y was shaped by s ongly in e ac ing g oups o clus e s. This is clea in he co esponding connec i i y map o Figu e 2C, in which he majo - i y o he clus e s belonged o he same communi y, as calcula ed by modula i y op imiza ion Modula i y: Tendency o he nodes in a ne wo k o connec wi hin a g oup mo e s ongly han wi h nodes in ano he g oup. using he Lou ain algo i hm (Blondel, Guillaume, Lambio e, & Le eb e,2008). Well-de ined communi ies eme ged o [CNQX] =60 nM and highe concen a ions, as indica ed by he iche s uc u e o he connec i i y maps, which show g adually smalle and mo e isola ed communi ies. Fo [CNQX] &600 nM ac i i y p ac ically ceased and no unc ional cha ac e - is ics could be ende ed. The connec i i y maps o Figu e 2C also helped o pic u e he CNQX deg ada ion p ocess in e ms o he spa ial a angemen o he clus e s. The maps showed ha he unc ional commu- ni ies we e physically compac , ha is, hey we e cons i u ed by g oups o adjacen clus e s. This indica es ha he clus e s ypically connec ed o hei immedia e neighbo s upon ne - wo k o ma ion, and sugges s ha he o e all dynamics o he ne wo k a e media ed by local in e ac ions. In his di ec ion, he maps also show ha he physical loca ion o he unc ional communi ies was p ese ed, bu ha hey educed in size as CNQX g ew. Eme gence o Hype e iciency in CNQX-Pe u bed Ne wo ks The abo e g adual agmen a ion o he ne wo k wi h CNQX was no accompanied by a s eady loss o clus e s’ in e communica ion. Su p isingly, o he mode a e CNQX concen a ion o 60 nM, he global e iciency GEFF inc eased by 8%— o he pa icula expe imen o Figu e 2— wi h espec o he ini ial condi ion, o la e all as expec ed. We no e ha he inc ease in GEFF s ongly con as s wi h he all o spon aneous ac i i y, which is educed by 60%. We e m hype e iciency his ab up inc ease in GEFF and, as we elabo a e la e , i s p esence indica es he nonlinea ela ionship be ween he s uc u al al e a ions caused by CNQX and he e ec i e connec i i y ones ha eme ge om dynamical in e ac ions among he clus e s. In o he wo ds, while CNQX ac ion on exci a o y synapses is s eady and ollows a pe cola ion-like silencing p ocess (So iano, Rod íguez Ma ínez, e al., 2008), he e ec i e connec i i y obeys mo e complex mechanisms in which swi ching dynamic in e ac ions and plas ici y-d i en adap a- ion play a cen al ole. Be o e in es iga ing he possible hype e iciency mechanisms, we e i ied ha his phe- nomenon was no an expe imen al a i ac by compa ing he e olu ion o CNQX-dosed ne - wo ks wi h con ol ones ha we e p epa ed and manipula ed iden ically. Figu e 2C compa es he connec i i y maps o he ep esen a i e pe u bed ne wo k wi h a con ol one. Along he expe imen , which las ed 75 min, he con ol cul u e e ained he same unc ional ai s ac oss he ne wo k wi h small a ia ions, while he deg aded one signi ican ly changed. The da a o he ep esen a i e expe imen o Figu e 2 was a gene al end ha consis en ly epea ed ac oss eigh di e en cul u es, despi e hei a iabili y in numbe o clus e s, spon a- neous ac i i y, and e ec i e connec i i y ai s. In all cases, CNQX caused a agmen a ion o he ne wo k in o communi ies oge he wi h a sudden inc ease o GEFF o mode a e CNQX le els. To a e age o e cul u e ealiza ions, howe e , we obse ed ha each cul u e esponded sligh ly di e en ly upon pe u ba ion. This esul ed in speci ic CNQX concen a ions o he beginning o unc ional al e a ions and he end o ac i i y. Thus, o each cul u e, we consid- e ed a e e ence alue [CNQX] e abo e which dynamic al e a ions we e de ec able, and a maximum [CNQX]max a which ac i i y ully ceased (Figu e 3A). Da a was hen escaled ac- co ding o hese poin s o ob ain he global e iciency as a unc ion o an adequa e con ol Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 166 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling Figu e 3. T ea men o expe imen al cu es and ela ionship be ween spon aneous ac i i y and global e iciency. (A) De ini ion o [CNQX] e (concen a ion be o e any ne wo k al e a ion occu ed) and [CNQX]max (no ne wo k ac i i y). (B) Alignmen o he eigh expe imen s (g ay cu es), hei a e age (blue), and compa ison wi h ou a e aged con ols (o ange). (C) E olu ion o GEFF as a unc ion o he a e age global ac i i y a o e e y CNQX concen a ion. Da a is scaled ela i e o [CNQX] e o pool all expe imen s oge he and highligh de ia ions om he unpe u bed condi ion (do ed lines). The plo shows ha hype e iciency s a es (GEFF >1) a e compa ible wi h low spon aneous ac i i y a es (g ay box). The hick blue line is a nonlinea sca e plo smoo hing o indica e he gene al end o he da a. I s shading is he con idence in e al se as 80%. pa ame e ha we e m deg ada ion le el d. The deg ada ion le el d=0means ha no CNQX is applied and he e o e he cul u e exhibi s i s na u al dynamics, while d=1co esponds o he CNQX dose ha is able o ully silence he cul u e’s ac i i y. The esul ing GEFF(d)cu es o he eigh expe imen s and hei a e age a e shown Figu e 3B. All analyzed cul u es exhib- i ed hype e iciency, which anged om a minimum o 3% o a maximum o 50%, and ha on a e age p ocu ed abou 20% GEFF inc ease. This clea peak in global e iciency was inexis en in con ols. An aspec ha is impo an o poin ou is he complex ela ionship be ween clus e s’ collec i e ac i i y aand global e iciency GEFF. The da a o Figu e 2A and B shows ha he hype e iciency obse ed a [CNQX] =60 nM coincides wi h a p ominen decay in ne wo k’s collec i e ac i i y. The eason o his appa en con adic ion is ha he global ac i i y jus in o ms abou he equency o collec i e beha io , bu does no cap u e he local dynamic in- e ac ion among clus e s. This in o ma ion is p o ided by he e ec i e connec i i y, om which he global e iciency is compu ed. Thus, we hypo hesize ha he clus e s s eng hen hei cou- pling despi e coac i a ing oge he less o en. The complex ela ionship be ween aand GEFF is illus a ed in Figu e 3C, in which we plo ed one agains he o he o each CNQX concen- a ion, bu scaled he alues ela i e o [CNQX] e o pool all eigh expe imen s in a single plo . In e es ingly, se e al o he poin s co esponding o a d op in ac i i y, o example, in he ange 0.5–1, a e associa ed o GEFF alues abo e 1 (shaded a ea). These poin s a e p ecisely he ones ha a e behind he obse ed hype e iciency, and ha we associa e o a s eng hen- ing o he e ec i e coupling among clus e s. This analysis hus sugges s ha a d op in global ac i i y caused by CNQX is esponded o by an inc ease in clus e s’ e ec i e coupling. A Deg ada ion Model wi h Synap ic Scaling Rep oduces he Hype e iciency Phenomenon We ca ied ou nume ical simula ions o unde s and he o igin o hype e iciency in he CNQX pe u bed expe imen s. In he simula ions we conside ed he same e ec i e ne wo ks as in he expe imen s o [CNQX] e and applied wo connec i i y deg ada ion schemes, namely pe cola i e deg ada ion (PD) and synap ic scaling deg ada ion (SSD). As ske ched in Figu e 4A, on he one hand, PD co esponds o a s anda d bond pe cola ion in which links a e g adually Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 167 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling Figu e 4. Nume ical models and hype e iciency. (A) Ske ch o he models used o simula e he impac o a g adual loss o e ec i e connec ions. In his example, he wo models a ge an e ec i e connec ion wi h weigh H=2. Fo pe cola i e deg ada ion (PD, le ) he bo om connec ion is simply emo ed upon a ack. Fo synap ic scaling deg ada ion (SSD, igh ) he same connec ion is emo ed, bu he su i ing ou going connec ions a e upscaled o dis ibu e he los weigh p opo - ionally among hei s. All cu es a e a e ages o e eigh ealiza ions, and shadings indica e s anda d de ia ion. (B) Compa ison o he deg ada ion ac ion be ween expe imen s (blue) and nume ical models (PD, pink; SSD, g een). PD po ays a as -decaying beha io and he ne wo k becomes dis- connec ed by d≃0.4. SSD ep oduces he hype e iciency (HE) peak and he gen le decay o GEFF wi h dup o he end o he disin eg a ion p ocess. The inse shows he dis ibu ion o maximum hy- pe e iciency alues o expe imen s and model. Despi e he dispe sion in he da a, SSD p ocu ed o e all simila alues. emo ed om weake o s onge acco ding o a h eshold H. This model e lec s he si ua ion in which clus e s’ dynamic in e ac ion p og essi ely anish as deg ada ion g ows. On he o he hand, SSD consis s in he same link emo al bu wi h he c ucial inclusion o synap ic scaling, which is simula ed as he s eng hening o he su i ing links’ weigh s p opo ionally o he los link’s weigh . This model cap u es a compensa o y esponse mechanism o he loss in ac i i y. In bo h models, he h esholds a e ecalcula ed a e he emo al p ocess o a ge he nex weakes link, yielding a na u ally inc easing sequence o h esholds. To compa e he models wi h he expe imen s, he h esholds Hwe e escaled in he ange [0, 1] o conco d wi h he deg ada ion le el d. Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 168 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling a e o 50 ames pe second ( ps), a size o 1,024 ×1,024 pixels, and a spa ial esolu ion o 5.76 µm/pixel. Spon aneous Ac i i y and Ne wo k Bu s s Clus e ed cul u es we e measu ed a DIV 8–12, a de elopmen al s age in which he clus e s exhibi ed spon aneous ac i i y wi h a leas 1 collec i e ac i a ion (bu s ) pe minu e (Table 1). Since, as obse ed p e iously by Telle e al. (2014,2015), spon aneous ac i i y in clus e ed cul u es is o en o a modula na u e, in which he size o collec i e ac i a ions encompasses om ew clus e s o he en i e ne wo k, we conside ed as bu s hose ac i i y e en s in which a leas i e clus e s coac i a ed in a window o 200 ms (Telle e al.,2014). Homgeneous cul u es we e measu ed a DIV 12 and exhibi ed s ongly cohe en dynamics, in which he whole ne wo k ac i a ed oge he du ing a bu s ing episode, emaining p ac- ically silen in be ween bu s s. A e age bu s ing equency in he ou s udied cul u es was 9.6 ±4.9 bu s s/min. Expe imen al P ocedu e and Pha macology Bo h exci a o y and inhibi o y connec ions we e p esen in he clus e ed cul u es. To in es i- ga e he changes in ac i i y induced solely by p og essi ely weake AMPA glu ama e exci a ion in neu ons, NMDA exci a o y ecep o s, which accoun o 20% o exci a o y d i e in co ical neu ons, we e blocked wi h 20 µM o he ecep o an agonis APV (Sigma A5282), and GABAA inhibi o y ecep o s we e blocked wi h 40 µM o he an agonis bicuculline (Sigma B7561). Bo h an agonis s we e applied simul aneously and he cul u e was le 5 min in da kness o biochemical s abiliza ion. A 15-min eco ding was hen conduc ed and swi ly analyzed o e alua e he ini ial s a e o he ne wo k. Cul u es exhibi ing poo o agmen ed ac i i y we e disca ded. Fo he highly ac i e cul u es, AMPA glu ama e exci a o y connec i i y was hen g adually weakened by applica ion o he ecep o an agonis CNQX, wi h p ese concen a- ions o [CNQX] (nM) =30, 60, 120, 300, 600, 1,000. Fo each CNQX concen a ion, spon a- neous ac i i y was eco ded o 15 min. Cul u es we e kep in da kness o 5 min in be ween eco dings o he nex d ug applica ion o ake e ec . To in es iga e whe he he neu onal cul u es we e able o eco e he ac i i y pa e ns p io o CNQX ac ion, he s udied clus e ed cul u es we e washed o wi h esh RS a he end o he eco ding session, APV and bicuculine applied again, and ac i i y moni o ed o addi ional 20 min. Con ol expe imen s we e ca ied ou o e i y ha he en i e p ocedu e and du a ion o he eco dings did no a ec he heal h o he neu ons. Con ol eco dings consis ed iden ical manipula ions as s anda d expe imen s bu wi hou addi ion o CNQX. A p ac ically iden ical p ocedu e was ollowed wi h homogeneous cul u es, wi h he only di e ence ha he CNQX concen a ions we e adjus ed ollowing Tibau e al. (2020) and Tibau e al. (2013b), and used [CNQX] (nM) =100, 200, 400, 800, 1,000, 2,000. Da a Analysis Fluo escence aces. Fo each expe imen , neu onal clus e s o indi idual neu ons we e man- ually iden i ied on a highly con as ed luo escence image and asc ibed as egions o in e es (ROIs). The a e age luo escence (g ay scale le el) wi hin each ROI was hen compu ed, and he aw luo escence aces Fi( ) o each clus e iex ac ed. Each ace was hen co ec ed Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 175 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling om global d i s and a i ac s and no malized as DFFi(%)≡100 ·(Fi( )−Fi,0)/Fi,0, whe e Fi,0 i he basal luo escence o each clus e . The onse imes o ac i a ion o clus e s o indi id- ual neu ons we e de e mined as hose e en s in which he luo escence ace c ossed a p ese h eshold, se as he mean + 2 imes he s anda d de ia ion o he en i e luo escence ace (Telle e al.,2014,2015). T ains o ac i i y we e hen buil by asc ibing as ‘1’ he exis ence o an ac i a ion a a gi en ime poin , and ‘0’ o he wise. Ne wo k Analysis E ec i e connec i i y. I was in e ed using a modi ied e sion o ans e en opy (TE) (Sch eibe , 2000). TE was compu ed o each pai o nodes Xand Y(ei he clus e s o neu ons) wi h signals xmand ymindexed by 0≤m≤mmax, whe e mmax is he o al numbe o ime s eps in he da a, as TEY→X=−∑ 0≤n≤nmax 0≤i≤iM pxm+1,x(i) m,y(i) m×log2 pxm+1  x(i) m,y(i) m pxm+1  x(i) m,(1) whe e iis he index o he pas ime s ep conside ed, ha is, he leng h o he ec o s {x(i) m}, and iM=2is he Ma ko o de o he model. He e, ins an aneous eedback was assumed, meaning ha Xand Ycould in e ac wi hin a ime bin, as in gene alized ans e en opy (O landi, S e e , So iano, Geisel, & Ba aglia,2014;S e e e al.,2012). E ec i e connec i i y was in e ed o he 15-min-long as e plo s (mmax =45, 000 poin s wi h an acquisi ion a e o 50 ps). TE =0 o an iden ical o andom pai o signals. Since expe imen al eco dings a e sho , i may occu ha andom ac i a ions in nea by ime bins a e aken as causal in e ac ions. Thus, o ejec spu ious connec ions, signi icance zwas es ablished o any connec ion X o Yby compa ing he TEY→Xes ima e wi h he join dis ibu ion o TE o all inpu sco es X′ o Yand ou pu sco es X o Y′( o any X′and Y′), as z=TEY→X− hTEjoin i σjoin ,(2) whe e hTEjoin iis he a e age alue o he join dis ibu ion and σjoin is i s s anda d de ia- ion. Signi ican connec ions we e hen se as hose wi h z≥2. This h eshold was consid- e ed op imal since i cap u ed he low o neu onal communica ion du ing ac i i y a bo h local and global scales. A lowe h eshold o z=1yielded ne wo ks ha excessi ely em- phasized whole-ne wo k coo dina ed ac i i y, e ec i ely shaping andom g aphs in all s udied cases. Th esholds z&3emphasized he s onges neu on- o-neu on in e ac ions only and o - en yielded emp y ma ices. All esul s p esen ed he e we e consis en wi h h esholds in he ange 1.5 ≤z≤2.5. By cons uc ion, he adjacency ma ix A={aij}o signi ican connec- ions was di ec ed and weigh ed, concep ually cap u ing he s eng h o dynamic in e ac ions be ween clus e s o neu ons, and wi h he weigh o he connec ion gi en in s anda d de ia ion uni s o he join dis ibu ion. Densi y o links D. Fo a ne wo k wi h Nnodes, i was de ined as he ac ion o o al exis ing e ec i e links ( ega dless hei weigh ) o all possible links, ha is, D=∑ij bij/(N(N−1)), whe e B={bij}is he bina ized adjacency ma ix o A. Single ealiza ion global e iciency G. The analysis o he da a o each in es iga ed cul u e p o ided a se e ec i e adjacency ma ices {aij}k, whe e kis he s ep o CNQX applica ion. Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 176 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling Fo each o hese ma ices, he global e iciency Go a ne wo k wi h Nnodes was de e mined ollowing he s anda d de ini ion (La o a & Ma chio i,2001;Rubino & Spo ns,2010) G=1 N(N−1)∑ i6=j 1 d(i,j),(3) whe e d(i,j)is he sho es weigh ed pa h calcula ed on he ma ix {aij}, ha is, he smalles sum o weigh s h oughou all possible pa hs be ween iand j. In his cons uc ion, highe connec ion weigh s co espond o sho e leng hs, and he e o e he global e iciency inc eases wi h he weigh o he connec ions. I no pa h exis s be ween nodes iand j hen d(i,j) = ∞, so ha he e is no con ibu ion o he summa ion in Equa ion 3. The e m N(N−1)in his equa ion is a no maliza ion ac o ha accoun s o all possible di ec ed links ha can be o med by he Nnodes. Global e iciency was calcula ed using he B ain Connec i i y Toolbox in Ma lab. Deg ada ion Le el dand Alignmen o Expe imen al Cu es The CNQX concen a ions we e con e ed in o a well-de ined pa ame e ha cap u ed in a ange [0, 1] he p og essi e damage o a neu onal ne wo k. Thus, o each expe imen n, he CNQX concen a ions we e ans o med in o s eps o a deg ada ion le el dby de ining d(n) k=[CNQX](n) k−[CNQX](n) e [CNQX](n) max ,(4) whe e kis he s ep o CNQX applica ion along he expe imen , [CNQX]k he co esponding concen a ion alue, [CNQX] e he e e ence concen a ion abo e which he dynamic al e - a ions in he ne wo k a e measu able, and [CNQX]max he concen a ion ha ully silenced he ne wo k. Wi h his cons uc ion, he deg ada ion le el d a ied be ween 0 (no al e a ion o he ne wo k) o 1 ( ull silencing o ac i i y and comple e e ec i e ne wo k b eakdown). Da a ou - side hese bounds was dis ega ded. Since [CNQX] e and [CNQX]max a ied ac oss cul u es, he use o dp o ided a obus manne o a e age among cul u es. Scaled Global E iciency GEFF and A e aged GEFF(d)Cu es The se o global e iciency alues o each expe imen , G(n)(d), was scaled wi h espec o i s e e ence alue p io damage, as G(n) EFF(d) = G(n)(d)/G(n) e , whe e G(n) e is he global e iciency measu ed a d=0. The G(n) EFF(d)cu es we e hen in e pola ed as 100 equidis an poin s by using a cubic in e pola ion ha p ese ed he shape o he cu es, and a e aged o e n=8 expe imen al ealiza ions (clus e ed cul u es) o n=4(homogeneous cul u es). Nume ical Models o Ne wo k Deg ada ion Two nume ical models we e p oposed o elucida e he impac o g adual deg ada ion on ne - wo k global e iciency. Bo h models conside ed he same ini ial e ec i e ne wo ks as in he expe imen s o d=0, deno ed as {a(0) ij }, and applied a se ies o ules o he dele ion o links. Since he e ec i e connec i i y ma ices we e ob ained om ans e en opy wi h a signi i- cance h eshold z=2, he alues {a(0) ij }we e bounded be ween amin =2and a gi en amax ha depended on each ne wo k. Pe cola i e deg ada ion (PD). This model p og essi ely dele ed he e ec i e ou pu links whose weigh s we e equal o lowe han a h eshold H, s a ing a H=amin and p og essi ely Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 177 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling a ge ing s onge links (Figu e 4A, le ). Thus, a a gi en simula ion s ep, he dele ed links we e hose ha ul illed H=aij, inc easing Ha e wa d o a ge he nex weak link in he ne wo k, un il all links o he ne wo k we e dele ed. The global e iciency Gwas compu ed a each h eshold, and he inal GPD( H) alues s o ed o u he analysis. Synap ic scaling deg ada ion (SSD). This model also p og essi ely dele ed he weakes ou - pu links, bu wi h he c ucial addi ional ule ha , upon link emo al (wi h weigh H), all su i ing ou pu links sha ed he weigh o he emo ed one, inc easing hei s p opo ionally (Figu e 4A, igh ). Thus, i he e we e a leas wo links and he o al ou pu s eng h be o e dele ion was sbe i=∑jabe ij , he new weigh s we e gi en by aij =abe ij ·sbe i/(sbe i− H). I only one ou pu link was p esen , i was dele ed as in PD. The new global e iciency o he ne wo k GSSD( H)was hen compu ed, he h eshold upda ed o seek o he new weakes links, and he p ocess s a ed again. Simula ion ended when all links in he ne wo k we e emo ed, and he inal GSSD( H) alues s o ed. The GPD( H)and GSSD( H)da a ob ained om he models was inally ea ed as in he expe imen s. Fi s , o each simula ed ne wo k, he H alues (which anged om amin o amax in he PD model, and om amin o a ce ain a∗ max ≥amax o SSD) we e scaled as d∈[0, 1]. The new GPD(d)and GSSD(d)cu es we e hen scaled ela i e o hei alues a d=0and a e aged among ealiza ions o ob ain he scaled global e iciencies GEFF(d), which could be di ec ly compa ed wi h he expe imen s. E hics S a emen All p ocedu es we e app o ed by he E hical Commi ee o Animal Expe imen a ion o he Uni e si y o Ba celona, unde o de DMAH-5461, and in acco dance o he egula ions o he Gene ali a de Ca alunya (Spain). AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS Es e anía Es é ez-P iego: Da a cu a ion; Fo mal analysis; In es iga ion; Me hodology; So - wa e; Visualiza ion; W i ing - O iginal D a . Sa a Telle : Da a cu a ion; Me hodology; Re- sou ces; So wa e; Supe ision; Valida ion. Cla a G anell: Da a cu a ion; Fo mal analysis; Me hodology; Valida ion; Visualiza ion; W i ing - Re iew & Edi ing. Alex A enas: Concep ual- iza ion; Fo mal analysis; Funding acquisi ion; In es iga ion; P ojec adminis a ion; Resou ces; Supe ision; W i ing - Re iew & Edi ing. Jo di So iano: Concep ualiza ion; Funding acqui- si ion; In es iga ion; Me hodology; Resou ces; So wa e; Supe ision; Valida ion; W i ing - O iginal D a ; W i ing - Re iew & Edi ing. FUNDING INFORMATION Jo di So iano, Fundació Bancà ia “La Caixa” (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/100000778), Awa d ID: LCF/PR/HR19/52160007. Jo di So iano, H2020 Fu u e and Eme ging Technologies (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/100010664), Awa d ID: 713140 MESOBRAIN. Es e anía Es é ez- P iego, H2020 Fu u e and Eme ging Technologies (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/100010664), Awa d ID: 713140 MESOBRAIN. Jo di So iano, Sec e a ía de Es ado de In es igación, Desa ollo e Inno ación (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/501100007136), Awa d ID: FIS2013- 41144-P, FIS2016- 78507-C2-2-P, FIS2017-90782-REDT. Sa a Telle , Sec e a ía de Es ado de In es igacíón, Desa ollo e Inno ación (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/501100007136),Awa d ID: FIS2013-41144-P, FIS2016- 78507-C2-2-P, FIS2017-90782-REDT. Jo di So iano, Depa amen Ne wo k Neu oscience 1 178 Func ional s eng hening h ough synap ic scaling d’Inno ació, Uni e si a s i Emp esa, Gene ali a de Ca alunya (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039 /501100002943), Awa d ID: 2017-SGR-1061. Alex A enas, Depa amen d’Inno ació, Uni e - si a s i Emp esa, Gene ali a de Ca alunya (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/501100002943), Awa d ID: 2017-SGR-896. Alex A enas, Sec e a ía de Es ado de In es igación, Desa ollo e Inno- ación (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/501100007136),Awa d ID: PGC2018-094754-B-C21. Alex A enas, Uni e si a Ro i a i Vi gili (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/501100007512), Awa d ID: 2017PFRURV-B2-41. Alex A enas, ICREA Academia . Alex A enas, James S. McDonnell Foun- da ion (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/100000913), Awa d ID: 220020325. Cla a G anell, James S. McDonnell Founda ion (h p://dx.doi.o g/10.13039/100000913), Awa d ID: 220020457. Cla a G anell, Sec e a ía de Es ado de In es igación, Desa ollo e Inno ación (h p://dx.doi.o g /10.13039/501100007136), Awa d ID: Juan de la Cie a. REFERENCES Ae s, H., Fias, W., Caeyenbe ghs, K., & Ma inazzo, D. (2016). B ain ne wo ks unde a ack: Robus ness p ope ies and he impac o lesions. B ain,139(12), 3063–3083. Ba al, J., & Reyes, A. 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