http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/11/101102171608.htm"Immune cells known as microglia, long thought to be activated in the brain only when fighting infection or injury, are constantly active and likely play a central role in one of the most basic, central phenomena in the brain -- the creation and elimination of synapses.
The finding, reported in the Nov. 2 issue of PLoS Biology, catapults the humble microglia cell from its well-recognized duty of protecting the brain to direct involvement in creating the cellular networks at the core of brain behavior. Its apparent role as an architect of synapses -- junctions between brain cells called neurons -- comes as a surprise to researchers long accustomed to thinking of microglia as cells focused exclusively on keeping the brain safe from threats.
"When scientists talk about microglia, the talk is almost always about disease. Our work suggests that microglia may actively contribute to learning and memory in the healthy brain, which is something that no one expected," said Ania Majewska, Ph.D., the neuroscientist at the University of Rochester Medical Center who led the work.
The group's paper is a remarkably detailed look at how brain cells interact with each other and react to their environment swiftly, reaching out constantly to form new links or abolish connections.
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It's definitely worth a full read, if this stuff is of any interest to you at all.
:hi:
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