Astrocyte facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Astrocyte |
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| An astrocytic cell from rat brain grown in tissue culture. It is stained with antibodies. The blue material shows stained DNA, and shows the nuclei of the astrocyte and other cells. | |
| Latin | Astrocytus |
Astrocytes are characteristic star-shaped glial cells in the brain and spinal cord. They are also known collectively as astroglia.
The proportion of astrocytes in the brain varies. Studies have found that the astrocyte proportion varies by region from 20% to 40% of all glia.
Astrocytes do many things. They help the endothelial cells of the blood–brain barrier, provide nutrients to the nervous tissue, keep extracellular ions in balance. They also help repair the brain and spinal cord after traumatic injuries.
Research since the mid-1990s has shown that astrocytes release Ca2+ ions, and adjust brain functions. Such discoveries have made astrocytes an important area of research in neuroscience.
Images for kids
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Astrocytes (green) in the context of neurons (red) in a mouse cortex cell culture
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23-week-old fetal brain culture human astrocyte
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Astrocytes are depicted in red. Cell nuclei are depicted in blue. Astrocytes were obtained from brains of newborn mice.
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Metabolic interactions between astrocytes and neurons
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Fig. 6 The conjectured switching role of glia in the biological neural detection scheme as suggested by Nossenson et al.
See also
In Spanish: Astrocito para niños
