by Ingrid Fadelli , Medical Xpress The morphological consequences of the five-ligand cocktail added to cultured human astrocytes. Individual cell traces are highlighted in white and demonstrate the ability of the ligands to induce a more complex and branched astrocyte morphology. Credit: Nature Neuroscience (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41593-023-01375-8 Astrocytes are a type of glial cell in the central...
by Baylor College of Medicine Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine have unraveled the processes that give astrocytes, the most abundant glial cell in the brain, their special bushy shape, which is fundamental for brain function. They report in the journal Nature that neuronal activity is necessary and sufficient for astrocytes to develop their complex shape, and interrupting this...
Reviewed by Emily Henderson, B.Sc. Nov 25 2022 Researchers at Tohoku University have shown that astrocytes in the mouse brain exhibit an acid response with intensified epileptic seizures. The astrocytes’ acid response could lead to the amplification of excitatory neuronal signals and be the underlying drive for generating plasticity for epileptogenesis. The findings were detailed...
by Salk Institute Salk researchers studied the molecules produced by astrocytes, like those pictured, to understand how the cells play a role in neurodevelopmental disorders. Credit: Salk Institute Neurons often get most of the credit for keeping our brains sharp and functioning—as well as most of the blame when it comes to brain diseases. But...
by Weill Cornell Medical College A humanized mouse model of autism. The image depicts sections of brain with astrocytes labeled in green. Top row: control astrocytes; Bottom row: astrocytes derived from patients with autism spectrum disorder. Credit: Megan Allen Abnormalities in a type of brain cell called astrocytes may play a pivotal role in causing...
CNRS IMAGE: AN ASTROCYTE (GREEN) IS SURROUNDED BY NEURONS (MAGENTA) EACH CONTAINING AN AGGREGATE OF MUTATED HUNTINGTIN (WHITE). CREDIT: © LAURENE ABJEAN Huntington’s disease1 is caused by a mutation in the Huntingtin gene, a protein necessary for the proper functioning of several brain cells. Mutated, it is no longer able to perform properly: it can even...
by Will Sansom, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Growing evidence suggests that traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an important risk factor for developing Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. But to date, effective therapies aren’t available for preventing or treating TBI-induced disease. Scientists may be on to something, though....
The blood-brain barrier wraps blood vessels where they pass through the central nervous system, controlling the passage of cells and molecules into and out of the brain. The blood-brain barrier becomes disrupted with age, allowing unwanted molecules into the brain, where they can spur chronic inflammation and dysfunction contributing to neurodegeneration. Researchers here investigate the response of astrocytes and microglia, supporting...
by Institut National de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale Primary culture of astrocytes. Credit: © Inserm/Ruiz, Anne-Laure Astrocytes have long been considered as mere support cells for neurons. In recent years, the study of astrocytes has grown, gradually revealing their importance in brain function. Researchers from Inserm, CNRS, and Collège de France at the...
Date: March 4, 2021 Source: Cell Press Brain cells called astrocytes derived from the induced pluripotent stem cells of patients with bipolar disorder offer suboptimal support for neuronal activity. In a paper appearing March 4th in the journal Stem Cell Reports, researchers show that this malfunction can be traced to an inflammation-promoting molecule called interleukin-6...
