Scientists have discovered that the unsung brain cells called astrocytes form extensive networks in the mouse brain1 ' networks similar in some respects to the brain circuits formed by the more celebrated brain cells called neurons. The researchers compiled a whole-brain, 3D map of astrocyte networks, which the authors say is the first of its kind. It , shows that webs of the cells connect far-flung regions of the brain, allowing the cells to exchange molecules with each other over long distances. 'It's a secret subway system we didn't know was there,' says Shane Liddelow, a neuroscientist at NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York City and a co-author of a paper published today in Nature describing the work. 'This opens up a whole new avenue of investigation.' The work is 'a fundamentally important advance in our understanding of nervous system structure', says David Lyons, a neurobiologist at the University of Edinburgh, UK, who was not involved with the research. He adds that...
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