News tagged with astrocyte
Researchers turn skin cells into neural precusors, bypassing stem-cell stage
Mouse skin cells can be converted directly into cells that become the three main parts of the nervous system, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. The finding is an extension of a previous ...
Jan 30, 2012 |
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Scientists cultivate human brain's most ubiquitous cell in lab dish
Pity the lowly astrocyte, the most common cell in the human nervous system.
May 22, 2011 |
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Researchers focus on human cells for spinal cord injury repair
For the first time, scientists discovered that a specific type of human cell, generated from stem cells and transplanted into spinal cord injured rats, provide tremendous benefit, not only repairing damage to the nervous ...
Medicine & Health / Medical research
Mar 02, 2011 |
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New research reveals unexpected biological pathway in glaucoma
In a study published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (Early Edition ahead of print), a team of researchers from the Kennedy Krieger Institute and four collaborating institutions, identified a new ...
Medicine & Health / Medical research
Jan 03, 2011 |
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Studying altered brain cells sheds light on epilepsy
Neuroscience researchers have zeroed in on a novel mechanism that helps control the firing of electrical signals among neurons. By isolating the molecular and electrical events that occur when this control is disrupted, the ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Apr 25, 2010 |
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Cancer stem cells suppress immune response against brain tumor
Cancer-initiating cells that launch glioblastoma multiforme, the most lethal type of brain tumor, also suppress an immune system attack on the disease, scientists from The University of Texas M. D. Anderson ...
Jan 15, 2010 |
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New research findings pave the way to more accurate interpretation of brain imaging data
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a technique widely used in studying the human brain. However, it has long been unclear exactly how fMRI signals are generated at brain cell level. This information is crucially ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Aug 28, 2009 |
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Neural stem cells offer potential treatment for Alzheimer's disease
(PhysOrg.com) -- UC Irvine scientists have shown for the first time that neural stem cells can rescue memory in mice with advanced Alzheimer's disease, raising hopes of a potential treatment for the leading ...
Medicine & Health / Medical research
Jul 20, 2009 |
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Astrocytes help separate man from mouse
A type of brain cell that was long overlooked by researchers embodies one of very few ways in which the human brain differs fundamentally from that of a mouse or rat, according to researchers who published their findings ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Mar 23, 2009 |
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Rett Syndrome scientist makes significant discovery
A paper published online today in Nature Neuroscience reveals the presence of methyl CpG binding protein 2 (MeCP2) in glia. MeCP2 is a protein associated with a variety of neurological disorders, including Rett Syndrome, the mo ...
Medicine & Health / Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes
Feb 23, 2009 |
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Astrocyte
Astrocytes (etymology: astron gk. star, cyte gk. cell), also known collectively as astroglia, are characteristic star-shaped glial cells in the brain and spinal cord. They perform many functions, including biochemical support of endothelial cells that form the blood–brain barrier, provision of nutrients to the nervous tissue, maintenance of extracellular ion balance, and a role in the repair and scarring process of the brain and spinal cord following traumatic injuries.
Research since the mid-1990s has shown that astrocytes propagate intercellular Ca2+ waves over long distances in response to stimulation, and, similar to neurons, release transmitters (called gliotransmitters) in a Ca2+-dependent manner. Data suggest that astrocytes also signal to neurons through Ca2+-dependent release of glutamate. Such discoveries have made astrocytes an important area of research within the field of neuroscience.
For more information about Astrocyte, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
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