Abstract
Communication between cells is a basic requirement for proper nervous system function. Glial cells execute various functions, operating in close coordination with neurons. Recent research revealed that cell communication is mediated by the exchange of extracellular vesicles, which are also secreted by glial cells and neurons. Extracellular vesicles comprise exosomes and microvesicles, which deliver proteins and ribonucleic acids to target cells. As a result of transfer, the vesicle cargo components can modulate the phenotype of recipient cells. Here, we discuss the characteristics and functions of extracellular vesicles in general and in particular in the central nervous system, where myelinating oligodendrocytes release exosomes in response to neurotransmitter signals, which are internalized by neurons and exhibit neuroprotective functions.
About the authors
Studies in Biology at the University of Heidelberg. 1997 PhD at the Institute for Neurobiology, University of Heidelberg. 1998-2000 postdoc at the Center for Molecular Biology, Heidelberg and the Max-Planck-Institute of Experimental Medicine in Göttingen (Department of Neurogenetics). Since 2001 principle investigator and lecturer at the Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz.
Studies in Biology at the University of Mainz and Heidelberg. 2007 PhD at the Institute of Molecular Biosciences, University of Frankfurt. Since 2008 postdoc at the Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz.
© 2017 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin/Boston
