Dentate gyrus in rat hippocampus, with astrocytes in green, neurons in red, and nuclei in blue.RUMANA HUG, MOUNT SINAI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
A. Suzuki et al., “Astrocyte-neuron lactate transport is required for long-term memory formation,” Cell, 144:810-23, 2011. Free F1000 evaluation
Astrocytes are star-shaped brain cells that physically support and provide nourishment to neurons and may also be involved in synaptic transmission. Now, for the first time in living animals, they’ve been shown to be essential for long-term memory formation.
Through the work of Pierre Magistretti, of the University of Lausanne-EPFL, and others, it has been known that in response to certain neurotransmitters, astrocytes break down glycogen and release lactate. Now Magistretti has collaborated with Cristina Alberini at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine to show that glycogenolysis in astrocytes and transport of the released lactate into neurons play a vital role in memory formation.
They found ...
