Coordination Funds

神经科学研究早就确定，主要的神经元类别，如投射神经元和中间神经元，每一类都由许多专门的亚型组成，这些亚型适应于在网络中执行特定的任务。与之形成鲜明对比的是，每一类大胶质细胞通常仍被认为是同质的细胞群，因此通常被称为“星形胶质细胞”或“少突胶质细胞”。然而，最近的研究提供了令人信服的证据，表明这一图景过于简单化，表明每一类胶质细胞所包含的细胞群比通常认为的要多样化得多。神经胶质细胞在不同的脑区、不同的发育阶段和生物体的不同活动水平上似乎具有不同的生理特性。这些观察结果表明，胶质细胞的功能特化可能已经发展到满足不同网络的特定要求，这些网络可能是大脑活动的关键决定因素。这个新概念将改变我们对大脑功能的看法，并使神经胶质细胞成为人们更加关注的焦点。然而，它仍然基于相当轶事的证据，因此，对神经胶质异质性的研究还处于起步阶段。我们将在SPP 1757中讨论这个神经科学的基本问题。这个新的优先项目的主要目标是了解神经胶质细胞的特化，并阐明其对大脑功能和行为的贡献。最终，优先计划将为更好地理解神经胶质在脑病理中的分子和细胞作用铺平道路，这是开发新的、更定制的和有针对性的脑损伤和疾病治疗策略所迫切需要的。为了揭示胶质异质性是如何发展的以及它的功能后果是什么，我们将整合来自最先进的高通量技术、细胞生物学方法和使用电生理学、细胞和功能成像的生理学研究的分子数据。此外，我们将分析神经胶质特化对周围神经元、特定大脑区域和大脑表现的影响。

Neuroscience research has long established that the major classes of neurones such as projection neurones and interneurones each consist of a multitude of specialized subtypes adapted to performing defined tasks in the network. In stark contrast, each class of macroglia is often still considered a homogeneous population of cells and thus commonly addressed as "the astrocyte" or "the oligodendrocyte".Recent studies have, however, provided compelling evidence that this picture is way too simplistic, indicating that each class of glial cells embodies a much more diverse cell population than commonly thought. Glial cells appear to have distinct physiological properties in different brain regions, at different developmental stages and at different activity levels of the organism. These observations suggest that functional specializations of glia might have developed to meet the specific requirements of distinct networks which might as such be critical determinants of brain activity. This new concept will change the way we think about brain function and puts glial cells into an even more prominent focus of attention. It is, however, still based on rather anecdotal evidence and as such, research on glial heterogeneity is in its infancy. We will address this fundamental question of neuroscience in the SPP 1757. The main goals of this new Priority Programme are to understand glial cell specialization and to elucidate its contribution to brain function and behaviour. Ultimately, the Priority Programme will pave the way for a better understanding of the molecular and cellular role of glia in brain pathologies that is urgently needed to develop novel, more customized and targeted strategies for the treatment of brain injury and disease.To unravel how glial heterogeneity develops and what its functional consequences are, we will consolidate molecular data from state-of-the-art high-throughput techniques, from cell biology approaches and from physiological studies using electrophysiology, cellular and functional imaging. Furthermore, we will analyse the impact of glial specializations on the surrounding neurons, on the given brain region and on brain performance.