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Although the exact mechanism is not completely understood, astrocytes are known to facilitate changes in blood flow [9] [10] and have long been thought to play a role in waste removal in the brain. [11] Researchers have long known that astrocytes express water channels called aquaporins. [12]
Astrocytes (green) in the context of neurons (red) in a mouse cortex cell culture 23-week-old fetal brain culture human astrocyte Astrocytes (red-yellow) among neurons (green) in the living cerebral cortex. Astrocytes are a sub-type of glial cells in the central nervous system. They are also known as astrocytic glial cells.
Aqueductal stenosis, a narrowing of the cerebral aqueduct, obstructs the flow of CSF and has been associated with non-communicating hydrocephalus. Such narrowing can be congenital, arise via tumor compression (e.g. pinealoblastoma), or through cyclical gliosis secondary to an initial partial obstruction. [5]
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is a clear, colorless body fluid found within the tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord of all vertebrates. CSF is produced by specialized ependymal cells in the choroid plexus of the ventricles of the brain, and absorbed in the arachnoid granulations. In humans, there is about 125 mL of CSF at any one time ...
The choroid plexus regulates the production and composition of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), that provides the protective buoyancy for the brain. [2] [10] CSF acts as a medium for the glymphatic filtration system that facilitates the removal of metabolic waste from the brain, and the exchange of biomolecules and xenobiotics into and out of the brain.
Since bergmann glia appear to persist in the cerebellum, and perform many of the roles characteristic of astrocytes, they have also been called "specialized astrocytes." [9] Bergmann glia have multiple radial processes that extend across the molecular layer of the cerebellar cortex and terminate at the pial surface as a bulbous endfoot. [11]
The astrocytes of the glia limitans are responsible for separating the brain into two primary compartments. The first compartment is the immune-privileged brain and spinal cord parenchyma. This compartment contains multiple immunosuppressive cell surface proteins such as CD200 and CD95L and it allows for the release of anti-inflammatory factors.
Aquaporin-4's overall function is to provide fast water transportation as well as maintain homeostatic balance within the central nervous system. This channel can transport water up to speeds of 3E9 molecules per second. [7] It is the primary water channel protein that reconciles the homeostasis of water in the CNS. [6]