New paper on echinoderm radial glia

Echinoderm radial glia in adult cell renewal, indeterminate growth, and regeneration

A new review paper published in the journal Frontiers in Neural Circuits sheds light on the role of radial glia in adult cell renewal, indeterminate growth, and regeneration in echinoderms.

Radial glia are a type of glial cell that plays a critical role in the development of the nervous system in all chordates, including humans. However, in mammals, radial glia disappear after embryonic development, leaving only other types of glial cells in the adult brain.

Echinoderms, a phylum of marine animals that includes sea stars, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers, are unique in that they retain radial glia in their adult nervous systems. This allows echinoderms to continuously generate new neurons throughout their lives, even after injury.

The review paper by Vladimir Mashanov (Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine) and his colleagues at UNC Charlotte provides a comprehensive overview of the current knowledge on radial glia in echinoderms. The authors highlight the role of radial glia in adult neurogenesis, indeterminate growth, and regeneration of the echinoderm nervous system.

The authors also discuss the potential implications of these findings for understanding adult neurogenesis and regeneration in humans. For example, the authors suggest that radial glia may play a role in the formation of new neurons in the hippocampus, a brain region involved in learning and memory.

The discovery that radial glia play a key role in adult neurogenesis and regeneration in echinoderms is an exciting development with the potential to lead to new treatments for neurological disorders in humans.

Download the article

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