&lt;i&gt;L&lt;/i&gt;-Arginine Immunoreactive Enteric Glial Cells in the Enteric Nervous System of Rat Ileum

Nagahama, Masato; Semba, Reiji; Tsuzuki, Masako; Aoki, Eiko

doi:10.1159/000046901

Cited by 40 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 23 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Enteric glial-mediated neuromodulation Enteric glia can modulate enteric neural circuits in a number of ways, including terminating the actions of neurotransmitters from synapses, 57,58,60,61 supplying neurons with neurotransmitter precursors 11,62 and by generating neuroactive substances. 63 Removing neurotransmitters released at synapses is essential for the maintenance of normal neural activity.…”

Section: Enteric Glia 'Listen' To Neuronal Conversationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Novel functional roles for enteric glia in the gastrointestinal tract

Gulbransen

Sharkey

2012

Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol

330

291

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Enteric glia are a unique class of peripheral glial cells within the gastrointestinal tract. Major populations of enteric glia are found in enteric ganglia in the myenteric and submucosal plexuses of the enteric nervous system (ENS); these cells are also found outside of the ENS, within the circular muscle and in the lamina propria of the mucosa. These different populations of cells probably represent unique classes of glial cells with differing functions. In the past few years, enteric glia have been found to be involved in almost every gut function including motility, mucosal secretion and host defence. Subepithelial glia seem to have a trophic and supporting relationship with intestinal epithelial cells, but the necessity of these roles in the maintenance of normal epithelial functions remains to be shown. Likewise, glia within enteric ganglia are activated by synaptic stimulation, suggesting an active role in synaptic transmission, but the precise role of glial activation in normal enteric network activity is unclear. Excitingly, enteric glia can also give rise to new neurons, but seemingly only under limited circumstances. In this Review, we discuss the current body of evidence supporting functional roles of enteric glia and identify key gaps in our understanding of the physiology of these unique cells.

show abstract

Section: Enteric Glia 'Listen' To Neuronal Conversationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Novel functional roles for enteric glia in the gastrointestinal tract

Gulbransen

Sharkey

2012

Nat Rev Gastroenterol Hepatol

330

291

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In nonmyelinating Schwann cells penetrating the ENS with extrinsic nerves, expression is relatively low, whereas EGCs accompanying the intrinsic neurons express higher levels of this enzyme (Kato et al, 1990). Similar to astrocytes, EGCs also express vimentin (Jessen and Mirsky, 1983) and L-arginine (Nagahama et al, 2001) and are rich in glycogen granules.…”

Section: Localization and Phenotypic Characteristics Of Egcmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Secondly, as EGCs are rich in glycogen granules, they may constitute a major source of glucose for enteric neurons, similar to that provided by astrocytes to CNS neurons (Koizumi, 1974;Cataldo and Broadwell, 1986). Thirdly, EGCs have recently been shown to be the only cells within the ENS that are immunoreactive for L-arginine (Nagahama et al, 2001), a substrate required for the nitric oxide (NO) synthesis. NO is a mediator of intercellular signaling and is considered an important neurotransmitter in the ENS since NO synthase (NOS) immunoreactive neurons account for 20%-30% of ENS neurons Llewellyn-Smith et al, 1992;Ekblad et al, 1994;Timmermans et al, 1994).…”

Section: Neuroprotective and Neuromodulatory Functions Of Egcmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of enteric glial cells in inflammatory bowel disease

Cabarrocas

Savidge

Liblau

2002

Glia

159

154

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Enteric glial cells (EGCs) represent an extensive but relatively poorly described cell population within the gastrointestinal tract. Accumulating data suggest that EGCs represent the morphological and functional equivalent of CNS astrocytes within the enteric nervous system (ENS). The EGC network has trophic and protective functions toward enteric neurons and is fully implicated in the integration and the modulation of neuronal activities. Moreover, EGCs seem to be active elements of the ENS during intestinal inflammatory and immune responses, sharing with astrocytes the ability to act as antigen-presenting cells and interacting with the mucosal immune system via the expression of cytokines and cytokine receptors. Transgenic mouse systems have demonstrated that specific ablation of EGC by chemical ablation or autoimmune T-cell targeting induces an intestinal pathology that shows similarities to the early intestinal immunopathology of Crohn's disease. EGCs may also share with astrocytes the ability to regulate tissue integrity, thereby postulating that similar interactions to those observed for the blood-brain barrier may also be partly responsible for regulating mucosal and vascular permeability in the gastrointestinal tract. Disruption of the EGC network in Crohn's disease patients may represent one possible cause for the enhanced mucosal permeability state and vascular dysfunction that are thought to favor mucosal inflammation. GLIA 41:81-93, 2003.

show abstract

“…44 In fact, experimental human and animal studies have shown that enteric glial cells may also be involved in intestinal inflammation, 45,46 enteric neurotransmission [47][48][49] and, importantly, are essential for the homeostasis of enteric neurons. 50 With respect to this last aspect, a recent study showed that enteric glia disruption may alter the neurochemical coding of enteric neurons in an experimental animal model.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Colonic neuropathological aspects in patients with intractable constipation due to obstructed defecation

et al. 2007

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

One of the most frequent subtypes of constipation is represented by obstructed defecation, and it has recently been reported that these patients may have colonic motor abnormalities in addition to alterations of the anorectal area. However, it is unknown whether these patients display abnormalities of the enteric nervous system, as reported in other groups of constipated subjects. For this reason, we evaluated the neuropathologic aspects of the enteric nervous system in a homogeneous group of patients with obstructed defecation. Colonic specimens from 11 patients (nine women, age range 39-66 years) undergoing surgery for symptoms refractory to any therapeutic measure, including biofeedback training, were obtained and examined by means of conventional histological methods and immunohistochemistry (NSE, S100, c-Kit, formamide-mAb, Bcl-2, CD34, alfa-actin). Analysis of the specimens showed that the enteric neurons were significantly decreased only in the submucosal plexus of patients (Po0.0001 vs controls), whereas the enteric glial cells of constipated patients were reduced in both the myenteric (P ¼ 0.018 vs controls) and the submucosal plexus (P ¼ 0.004 vs controls). No difference between patients and controls were found concerning c-Kit and CD34 expression, and the number of apoptotic neurons. These findings support the concept that at least a subgroup of patients with obstructed defecation and severe, intractable symptoms display abnormalities of the enteric nervous system, mostly related to the enteric glial cells. These findings might explain some of the pathophysiological abnormalities, and help to better understand this condition.

show abstract

<i>L</i>-Arginine Immunoreactive Enteric Glial Cells in the Enteric Nervous System of Rat Ileum

Cited by 40 publications

References 23 publications

Novel functional roles for enteric glia in the gastrointestinal tract

Novel functional roles for enteric glia in the gastrointestinal tract

Role of enteric glial cells in inflammatory bowel disease

Colonic neuropathological aspects in patients with intractable constipation due to obstructed defecation

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About