Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Jun;603(11):3269-3273.
doi: 10.1113/JP288809. Epub 2025 May 31.

Mechanistic insight into the initiation of spreading depolarizations: Is it really all about potassium?

Affiliations

Mechanistic insight into the initiation of spreading depolarizations: Is it really all about potassium?

Rachel Ricks et al. J Physiol. 2025 Jun.
No abstract available

Keywords: cell volume; halorhodopsin; spreading depolarization; spreading depression.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

No competing interests declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Mechanistic convergence of different experimental and natural causes of spreading depolarization
The convergence of various identified causes of spreading depolarization toward a common pathway involving neuronal swelling is illustrated. The secondary increase in extracellular K+ creates a positive feedback loop, which may lead to a regenerate (spreading) event. Blue signifies mechanisms for which there good scientific evidence exists. Orange denotes mechanisms for which there is weaker evidence, and which should be the topic of future research to test this hypothesis further. *The list of possible mediators is not comprehensive.

Similar articles

References

    1. Aiba, I. , & Shuttleworth, C. W. (2014). Characterization of inhibitory GABA‐A receptor activation during spreading depolarization in brain slice. PLoS ONE, 9(10), e110849. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Andrew, R. D. , Labron, M. W. , Boehnke, S. E. , Carnduff, L. , & Kirov, S. A. (2007). Physiological evidence that pyramidal neurons lack functional water channels. Cerebral Cortex, 17(4), 787–802. - PubMed
    1. Andrew, R. D. , Hartings, J. A. , Ayata, C. , Brennan, K. C. , Dawson‐Scully, K. D. , Farkas, E. , Herreras, O. , Kirov, S. A. , Müller, M. , Ollen‐Bittle, N. , Reiffurth, C. , Revah, O. , Robertson, R. M. , Shuttleworth, C. W. , Ullah, G. , & Dreier, J. P. (2022). The critical role of spreading depolarizations in early brain injury: Consensus and contention. Neurocritical Care, 37(S1), 83–101. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Basarsky, T. A. , Feighan, D. , & MacVicar, B. A. (1999). Glutamate release through volume‐activated channels during spreading depression. Journal of Neuroscience, 19(15), 6439–6445. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Charles, A. , & Brennan, K. (2009). Cortical spreading depression‐new insights and persistent questions. Cephalalgia, 29(10), 1115–1124. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources