Instituto de Biomedicina de Sevilla (IBiS), Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío/Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)/Universidad de Sevilla, Seville, Spain; Biomedical Research Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (CIBERNED), Madrid, Spain.
Handb Clin Neurol. 2022;188:73-102. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-323-91534-2.00010-2.
The carotid body (CB) is a bilateral arterial chemoreceptor located in the carotid artery bifurcation with an essential role in cardiorespiratory homeostasis. It is composed of highly perfused cell clusters, or glomeruli, innervated by sensory fibers. Glomus cells, the most abundant in each glomerulus, are neuron-like multimodal sensory elements able to detect and integrate changes in several physical and chemical parameters of the blood, in particular O tension, CO and pH, as well as glucose, lactate, or blood flow. Activation of glomus cells (e.g., during hypoxia or hypercapnia) stimulates the afferent fibers which impinge on brainstem neurons to elicit rapid compensatory responses (hyperventilation and sympathetic activation). This chapter presents an updated view of the structural organization of the CB and the mechanisms underlying the chemosensory responses of glomus cells, with special emphasis on the molecular processes responsible for acute O sensing. The properties of the glomus cell-sensory fiber synapse as well as the organization of CB output are discussed. The chapter includes the description of recently discovered CB stem cells and progenitor cells, and their role in CB growth during acclimatization to hypoxemia. Finally, the participation of the CB in the mechanisms of disease is briefly discussed.
颈动脉体（CB）是位于颈动脉分叉处的双侧动脉化学感受器，在心肺自主平衡中起着重要作用。它由高度灌注的细胞簇或肾小球组成，由感觉纤维支配。每个肾小球中最丰富的是球细胞，它是一种神经元样的多模式感觉元件，能够检测和整合血液中几种物理和化学参数的变化，特别是 O 张力、CO 和 pH，以及葡萄糖、乳酸或血流。球细胞的激活（例如，在缺氧或高碳酸血症期间）刺激传入纤维，传入纤维作用于脑干神经元，引发快速代偿反应（过度通气和交感神经激活）。本章介绍了 CB 的结构组织和球细胞化学感觉反应的机制的最新观点，特别强调了负责急性 O 感应的分子过程。讨论了球细胞-感觉纤维突触的特性以及 CB 输出的组织。本章包括对最近发现的 CB 干细胞和祖细胞的描述，以及它们在对低氧血症的适应过程中 CB 生长中的作用。最后，简要讨论了 CB 在疾病机制中的参与。
