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Topic Review
Biography
Topic Review
Astrocyte Functions
Astrocytes are stellated glial cells that interface with nearly every functional element of the brain. They are the most abundant glial cells in the brain and can comprise up to 50% of the tissue volume in some regions. Their branch-like processes surround neurons, axons, synapses, and blood vessels, and perform numerous functions that are essential for brain homeostasis and neural functioning.
542
17 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Astrocyte–Neuron Crosstalk
Astrocyte-neuron crosstalk is a phenomenon in which both of those cell types depend on each other and support their development, genes expression, metabolism, excitability and plasticity. Astrocyte–neuron crosstalk incontrovertibly plays a crucial role in shaping neuronal metabolism. It has been shown that it substantially affects the expression of basal metabolic enzymes in both types of cells, by essentially unknown factor(s) which are released to extracellular space directly and using extracellular vesicles-packed molecules and by cell-to-cell contacts. Additionally, astrocytes support neurons with lactate, which (when secreted during enhanced neuronal activity events) stimulates a formation and maintenece of long-term plastycity phenomena in neurons.
726
29 Sep 2020
Topic Review
Astrocytes and Tissue Engineering
Astrocytes are key cells in the central nervous system. They are involved in many functions under physiological and pathological conditions. Primary cultures of astrocytes represent an important object for basic and translational neuroscience research, especially for in vitro cell models. Astrocyte cultures for functional cell models are most commonly isolated from rodent brains, because they are easily accessible and grow rapidly. Tissue engineering and biomaterial development represent a promising alternative to animal testing and provide an ideal opportunity to develop and test various biomaterials as scaffolds for purposes such as cell ingrowth and tissue repair.
449
13 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Astrocytes as Glutamate Producers and Targets in ALS
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease affecting motor neurons (MNs) in the motor cortex, brainstem, and spinal cord. ALS involves different cell types, such as neurons, astrocytes, microglia, and oligodendrocytes. Since all these cells express the same mutated genes in patients, ALS can arise from a combination of damaged MNs and their glial partners rather than only from the neuronal lineage. Many studies highlighted the solid non-neuronal signature in ALS and suggested astrocytes and microglia as critical players in disease progression rather than disease onset. Conversely, data support an alteration of oligodendrocyte function at the disease pre-symptomatic and early symptomatic stages.
178
01 Nov 2023
Topic Review
Asymmetric Cell Division
Asymmetric cell division (ACD) of neural stem cells and progenitors not only renews the stem cell population but also ensures the normal development of the nervous system, producing various types of neurons with different shapes and functions in the brain. One major mechanism to achieve ACD is the asymmetric localization and uneven segregation of intracellular proteins and organelles into sibling cells. Recent studies have demonstrated that liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) provides a potential mechanism for the formation of membrane-less biomolecular condensates that are asymmetrically distributed on limited membrane regions. Moreover, mechanical forces have emerged as pivotal regulators of asymmetric neural stem cell division by generating sibling cell size asymmetry. In this review, we will summarize recent discoveries of ACD mechanisms driven by LLPS and mechanical forces.
656
03 Nov 2021
Topic Review
ATF4 Role during HIV-1 Replication
Activating transcription factor 4 (ATF4) is a transcription factor known to regulate genes associated with the sensing of cellular stress such as amino acid deprival, protein misfolding, growth arrest, and cell death. Despite its key role at the crossroads of immune and stress responses, the precise impact of ATF4 during viral infections remains unclear. Thus, ATF4 has a dual role in promoting cell survival or cell death, but also in limiting infection or participating in viral replication.
106
18 Mar 2024
Topic Review
Atoh8 in Disease
Atoh8 is a transcription factor that belongs to a large superfamily of transcriptional regulators called bHLH proteins. In spite of two decades of research, multiple questions regarding its molecular function and involved mechanisms remain elusive.
387
29 Jan 2022
Topic Review
ATP12A Proton Pump in Respiratory Diseases
ATP12A encodes the catalytic subunit of the non-gastric proton pump, which is expressed in many epithelial tissues and mediates the secretion of protons in exchange for potassium ions. In the airways, ATP12A-dependent proton secretion contributes to complex mechanisms regulating the composition and properties of the fluid and mucus lining the respiratory epithelia, which are essential to maintain the airway host defense and the respiratory health. Increased expression and activity of ATP12A in combination with the loss of other balancing activities, such as the bicarbonate secretion mediated by CFTR, leads to excessive acidification of the airway surface liquid and mucus dysfunction, processes that play relevant roles in the pathogenesis of cystic fibrosis and other chronic inflammatory respiratory disorders. Here, the researchers summarize the findings dealing with ATP12A expression, function, and modulation in the airways, which led to the consideration of ATP12A as a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of cystic fibrosis and other airway diseases; the researchers also highlight the current advances and gaps regarding the development of therapeutic strategies aimed at ATP12A inhibition.
314
18 Oct 2023
Topic Review
ATRX/DAXX and ALT
ATRX is named for its causal role in ATR-X syndrome (α-thalassemia with mental impairment, X-linked), an X-linked disorder characterized by developmental delays, urogenital abnormalities, distinctive craniofacial features, and α-thalassemia caused by insufficient α-globin expression. Because of the central role of decreased α-globin mRNA expression in the ATR-X phenotype, research on ATRX initially focused on its potential as a transcriptional regulator. In fact, ATRX in concert with DAXX play wide-ranging roles in maintaining chromatin and reckoning with problematic DNA repeat sequences, with downstream effects on gene expression that have critical impacts in development. Proliferating cells must enact a telomere maintenance mechanism to ensure genomic stability. In a subset of tumors, telomeres are maintained not by telomerase, but through a homologous recombination-based mechanism termed Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres or ALT. The ALT process is linked to mutations in the ATRX/DAXX/H3.3 histone chaperone complex. This complex is responsible for depositing non-replicative histone variant H3.3 at pericentric and telomeric heterochromatin but has also been found to have roles in ameliorating replication in repeat sequences and in promoting DNA repair.
246
17 Apr 2023
Topic Review
AtWAKL10
Receptor-like kinases (RLKs) constitute a large group of cell surface receptors that play crucial roles in multiple biological processes. However, the function of most RLKs in plants has not been extensively explored, and much less for the class of cell wall associated kinases (WAKs) and WAK-like kinases (WAKLs). In this study, analyses of developmental expression patterns uncovered a putative role of AtWAKL10 in modulating leaf senescence, which was further investigated at physiological and molecular levels. The expression level of AtWAKL10 increased with the developmental progression and was rapidly upregulated in senescing leaf tissues. The promoter of AtWAKL10 contains various defense and hormone responsive elements, and its expression could be significantly induced by exogenous ABA, JA and SA. Moreover, the loss-of-function atwakl10 mutant showed earlier senescence along the course of natural development and accelerated leaf senescence under darkness and hormonal stresses, while plants overexpressing AtWAKL10 showed an opposite trend.
429
18 May 2021
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