Gonzalez-Perez Oscar, Lopez-Virgen Veronica, Quiñones-Hinojosa Alfredo
Laboratory of Neuroscience, School of Psychology, University of Colima, Colima, Col 28040, Mexico.
Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
Neuroimmunol Neuroinflamm. 2015 Apr-Jun;2(2):115-117. doi: 10.4103/2347-8659.153979.
The current knowledge in neuroscience indicates that neural tissue has two major cell populations: neurons and glia (term derived from the Greek word for ). Neuronal population is characterized by the capacity to produce action potentials, whereas glial cells are typically identified as the subordinate cell population of neurons. To date, this point of view has changed dramatically and growing evidence indicates that glial cells play a crucial role in normal mental functions and the pathogenesis of neurological diseases. Classically, glial cells include four major populations clearly discernible in the adult brain: astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, microglia cells and NG2 glia. Astrocytes, also referred as to , are by far the most abundant cell lineage in the adult brain. These cells are in close contact with several tissue components of the brain parenchyma including neurons, vasculature, extracellular matrix and other glial populations. Hence, the number and strategic position of astrocytes provide them with exceptional capacity for modulating multiple functions in the neural tissue.
神经科学的现有知识表明，神经组织有两大类细胞群：神经元和神经胶质细胞（该术语源自希腊语）。神经元群体的特征是具有产生动作电位的能力，而神经胶质细胞通常被视为神经元的从属细胞群。迄今为止，这种观点已经发生了巨大变化，越来越多的证据表明神经胶质细胞在正常心理功能和神经疾病的发病机制中起着至关重要的作用。传统上，神经胶质细胞包括在成人大脑中清晰可辨的四大类：星形胶质细胞、少突胶质细胞、小胶质细胞和NG2神经胶质细胞。星形胶质细胞，也被称为，是成人大脑中数量最多的细胞谱系。这些细胞与脑实质的几个组织成分密切接触，包括神经元、脉管系统、细胞外基质和其他神经胶质细胞群体。因此，星形胶质细胞的数量和战略位置赋予它们调节神经组织中多种功能的特殊能力。
