Molecular diversity of astrocytes with implications for neurological disorders

摘要

The astrocyte represents the most abundant yet least understood cell type of the CNS. Here, we use a stringent experimental strategy to molecularly define the astrocyte lineage by integrating microar-ray datasets across several in vitro model systems of astrocyte differentiation, primary astrocyte cultures, and various astrocyte-rich CNS structures. The intersection of astrocyte data sets, coupled with the application of nonastrocytic exclusion filters, yielded many astrocyte-specif ic genes possessing strikingly varied patterns of regional CNS expression. Annotation of these astrocyte-specif ic genes provides direct molecular documentation of the diverse physiological roles of the astrocyte lineage. This global perspective in the normal brain also provides a framework for how astrocytes may participate in the pathogenesis of common neurological disorders like Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, stroke, epilepsy, and primary brain tumors.