New experiments reveal how astrocytes tune neuronal activity to modulate our mental and emotional states. The results suggest ...

A project led by Johns Hopkins University has successfully imaged astrocytes, the brain's most abundant cells, in their natural state. The star-shaped astrocytes are known to be responsible for ...

Scientists have engineered a nanowire platform that mimics brain tissue to study astrocytes, the star-shaped cells critical for brain health, for the first time in their natural state. Astrocytes are ...

The link between Alzheimer’s disease and amyloid plaques is well documented, with innumerable studies exploring techniques and therapies to inhibit plaque formation, preventing development or ...

New research led by scientists from the RIKEN Center for Brain Science points to astrocytes as the brain cells responsible for long-term learning and memory. In a new Nature paper, they demonstrate ...

Why are we able to recall only some of our past experiences? A new study led by Jun Nagai at the RIKEN Center for Brain Science in Japan has an answer. Surprisingly, it turns out that the brain cells ...

Increased expression of the Ang‐II (Angiotensin II) precursor AGT in aged astrocytes lead to increased Ang‐II signaling from aged astrocytes to endothelium, thus increasingblood–brain barrier (BBB) ...

A collaborative French–Swiss study reveals a previously unknown role for astrocytes in the brain's information processing. Published in the journal Cell, the research shows that these glial cells are ...

Astrocytes are found throughout the brain. Each astrocyte is in contact with several neurons and more than 100'000 synapses. A new study shows that, at the microscopic level, dozens of synapses from ...

Major depressive disorder affects hundreds of millions worldwide, but a key to understanding its origins may lie in the brain’s immune system. New findings spotlight astrocytes—previously overshadowed ...

Brain cells named for stars are finally getting their time to shine. Three distinct studies, published May 15 in Science, show that astrocytes, once thought of as support cells, powerfully shape how ...

Astrocytes are star shaped cells that make up around 35% of human brain cells. They were once thought of as cells that simply supported neurons in the central nervous system (CNS). But in recent years ...