Isolation of ferret astrocytes reveals their morphological, transcriptional, and functional differences from mouse astrocytes.

ABSTRACT: Astrocytes play key roles in supporting the central nervous system structure, regulating synaptic functions, and maintaining brain homeostasis. The number of astrocytes in the cerebrum has markedly increased through evolution. However, the manner by which astrocytes change their features during evolution remains unknown. Compared with the rodent brain, the brain of the ferret, a carnivorous animal, has a folded cerebral cortex and higher white to gray matter ratio, which are common features of the human brain. To further clarify the features of ferret astrocytes, we isolated astrocytes from ferret neonatal brains, cultured these cells, and compared their morphology, gene expression, calcium response, and proliferating ability with those of mouse astrocytes. The morphology of cultured ferre

SUBMITTER: Roboon J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9584309 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature