"Science": This type of "supporting role" cells are a key role in brain plasticity

Among the various cells that make up the brain, neurons have always been the radiant "protagonists", and although astrocytes are numerous, they have only acted as "supporting actors" for a long time, and are thought to only play a role in supporting neurons

▲ Primary cultured astrocytes (picture source: reference [2]; Credit: Insertm/Ruiz, Anne-Laure)

Recently, the top academic journal "Science" published a research paper that put astrocytes in the spotlight

In the long run, this new discovery will give people the opportunity to find new strategies to improve the plasticity of the already developed brain and help people with brain damage or neurodevelopmental disorders to promote recovery

During a short period of time after birth, our brain continuously receives various signals from the external environment, and therefore flexibly adjusts the wiring between neurons to adapt to sensory input

The critical period of brain plasticity is closely related to the efficient processing of information and the normal development of cognition

In order to remedy problems like this, some scientists have envisioned how to restore the ability of the brain to rewire after the critical period is closed, and once again improve plasticity

In this study, a research team from France revealed the cell process that shuts down during the critical period through experiments on the visual cortex of mice

The researchers thus validated a strategy to "turn on" brain plasticity in adult mice

Note: The original text has been deleted

Reference

[1] Jérôme Ribot et al.

[2] The Key Role of Astrocytes in CognitiveDevelopmen.