Astrocytes, The Brain's Lesser Known Cells, Get Some Cognitive Respect

When something captures your interest, like this article, unique electrical rhythms called gamma oscillations sweep through your brain. These gamma oscillations reflect a symphony of cells—both excitatory and inhibitory—playing together in an orchestrated way. Though their role has been debated, gamma waves have been associated with higher-level brain function, and disturbances in the patterns have been tied to schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease, autism, epilepsy and other disorders. Now, new research from the Salk Institute shows that little known supportive cells in the brain known as astrocytes may in fact be major players that control these waves.   read more

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