Evidence for ion-mediated regulation of nerve endings via glial cells

A new study, conducted at Rockefeller's Laboratory of Developmental Genetics (Rockefeller University, NY, USA), has provided novel evidence for a specific mechanism of action glial cells employ to alter the shape and function of specific neurons. Understanding such mechanisms of specificity may have an impact on therapeutic research for neural disorders. The findings were published recently in Cell. It has already been suggested that glial cells may possess the ability to manipulate the shape of nerve endings and mold the function of neural cells, however, the mechanisms for such alterations remain, for the most part, unknown. Disruptions in the shape...