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Glial Cell Involvement In Early Alzheimer's Disease, Rachel Y. De La Torre

PSU McNair Scholars Online Journal

Glial cells, the resident immune cells of the brain, are important for brain health as they represent a critical function both in brain injury as well as in brain development and maintenance. Following brain injury, glia quickly respond by cleaning up neuronal and synaptic debris. In addition to their role as the cleaning cell of the brain, recent research has shown that during development, glia also shape and fine-tune neural connections by eliminating weak synapses fated for removal. However, whether glial cells also continue to remodel synaptic architecture in the adult brain is unclear. Moreover, synaptic pruning and loss are …