In addition to a tough outer shell, brains have internal defenses, including a powerful shield called the blood-brain barrier that defends brain cells from substances in the bloodstream that are toxic and dangerous to nerve cells. If the blood-brain barrier is breached, then health problems arise.
Now, in a study with potential impacts on a variety of neurological diseases, Virginia Tech researchers have provided the first experimental evidence from a living organism to show that an abundant, star-shaped brain cell known as an astrocyte is essential for blood-brain barrier health.
The research reassesses traditional claims about the role of astrocytes in the brain and confirms the long-held assumption — although it had been recently disputed — that astrocytes support the blood-brain barrier.
Furthermore, the finding gives scientists a path to understand diseases where frequent blood-brain barrier damage occurs, including traumatic brain injury, stroke, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease.
