Astrocyte alterations in neurodegenerative pathologies and their modeling in human induced pluripotent stem cell platforms

Astrocytes are the most abundant cell type in the brain. They were long considered only as passive support for neuronal cells. However, recent data have revealed many active roles for these cells both in maintenance of the normal physiological homeostasis in the brain as well as in neurodegeneration...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS 2019-07, Vol.76 (14), p.2739-2760
Main Authors: Oksanen, Minna, Lehtonen, Sarka, Jaronen, Merja, Goldsteins, Gundars, Hämäläinen, Riikka H., Koistinaho, Jari
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Astrocytes
Astrocytes - metabolism
Astrocytes - pathology
Biochemistry
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Biomedicine
Brain
Cell Biology
Homeostasis
Humans
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells - metabolism
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells - pathology
Life Sciences
Mathematical models
Modelling
Neurodegeneration
Neurodegenerative diseases
Neurodegenerative Diseases - metabolism
Neurodegenerative Diseases - pathology
Neurological diseases
Neuromodulation
Neurons - metabolism
Neurons - pathology
Parkinson's disease
Platforms
Pluripotency
Review
Stem cells
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Astrocytes are the most abundant cell type in the brain. They were long considered only as passive support for neuronal cells. However, recent data have revealed many active roles for these cells both in maintenance of the normal physiological homeostasis in the brain as well as in neurodegeneration and disease. Moreover, human astrocytes have been found to be much more complex than their rodent counterparts, and to date, astrocytes are known to actively participate in a multitude of processes such as neurotransmitter uptake and recycling, gliotransmitter release, neuroenergetics, inflammation, modulation of synaptic activity, ionic balance, maintenance of the blood–brain barrier, and many other crucial functions of the brain. This review focuses on the role of astrocytes in human neurodegenerative disease and the potential of the novel stem cell-based platforms in modeling astrocytic functions in health and in disease.
ISSN:1420-682X
1420-9071
DOI:10.1007/s00018-019-03111-7