Abstract
Astrocytes are now considered as key players in brain information processing because of their newly discovered roles in synapse formation and plasticity, energy metabolism and blood flow regulation. However, our understanding of astrocyte function is still fragmented compared to other brain cell types. A better appreciation of the biology of astrocytes requires the development of tools to generate animal models in which astrocyte-specific proteins and pathways can be manipulated. In addition, it is becoming increasingly evident that astrocytes are also important players in many neurological disorders. Targeted modulation of protein expression in astrocytes would be critical for the development of new therapeutic strategies. Gene transfer is valuable to target a subpopulation of cells and explore their function in experimental models. In particular, viral-mediated gene transfer provides a rapid, highly flexible and cost-effective, in vivo paradigm to study the impact of genes of interest during central nervous system development or in adult animals. We will review the different strategies that led to the recent development of efficient viral vectors that can be successfully used to selectively transduce astrocytes in the mammalian brain.
Highlights
Reviewed by: Carole Escartin, Molecular Imaging Research Center, France Sebastian Kügler, Universitätsmedizin Göttingen, Germany Keith Murai, McGill University, Canada Veerle Baekelandt, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium
Thanks to these tools that include targeted transgenesis and viral transduction, considerable advances were made in the understanding of astroglial biology
This first generation of astrocytic viral vectors was instrumental to start depicting their role in specific brain regions of different species
Summary
Reviewed by: Carole Escartin, Molecular Imaging Research Center, France Sebastian Kügler, Universitätsmedizin Göttingen, Germany Keith Murai, McGill University, Canada Veerle Baekelandt, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium. The tropism of viral vectors is primarily determined by the interaction of the viral surface proteins with receptor molecules expressed on target cells but other mechanisms could be used for subpopulation-restricted gene transfer in the brain.
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