Chloride Channels in Astrocytes: Structure, Roles in Brain Homeostasis and Implications in Disease
1
Unitat de Fisiologia, Departament de Ciències Fisiològiques, Genes Disease and Therapy Program IDIBELL-Institute of Neurosciences, Universitat de Barcelona, L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, 08907 Barcelona, Spain
2
Centro de Investigación en red de enfermedades raras (CIBERER), ISCIII, 08907 Barcelona, Spain
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
These authors contributed equally to this work.
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20(5), 1034; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20051034
Received: 1 February 2019 / Revised: 15 February 2019 / Accepted: 17 February 2019 / Published: 27 February 2019
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Membrane Channels in Human Diseases: The Spanish Ion Channel Initiative Consortium (SICI))
Astrocytes are the most abundant cell type in the CNS (central nervous system). They exert multiple functions during development and in the adult CNS that are essential for brain homeostasis. Both cation and anion channel activities have been identified in astrocytes and it is believed that they play key roles in astrocyte function. Whereas the proteins and the physiological roles assigned to cation channels are becoming very clear, the study of astrocytic chloride channels is in its early stages. In recent years, we have moved from the identification of chloride channel activities present in astrocyte primary culture to the identification of the proteins involved in these activities, the determination of their 3D structure and attempts to gain insights about their physiological role. Here, we review the recent findings related to the main chloride channels identified in astrocytes: the voltage-dependent ClC-2, the calcium-activated bestrophin, the volume-activated VRAC (volume-regulated anion channel) and the stress-activated Maxi-Cl−. We discuss key aspects of channel biophysics and structure with a focus on their role in glial physiology and human disease.
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Keywords:
astrocyte; chloride channel; human diseases; structure; physiology
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MDPI and ACS Style
Elorza-Vidal, X.; Gaitán-Peñas, H.; Estévez, R. Chloride Channels in Astrocytes: Structure, Roles in Brain Homeostasis and Implications in Disease. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2019, 20, 1034. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20051034
AMA Style
Elorza-Vidal X, Gaitán-Peñas H, Estévez R. Chloride Channels in Astrocytes: Structure, Roles in Brain Homeostasis and Implications in Disease. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2019; 20(5):1034. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20051034
Chicago/Turabian StyleElorza-Vidal, Xabier; Gaitán-Peñas, Héctor; Estévez, Raúl. 2019. "Chloride Channels in Astrocytes: Structure, Roles in Brain Homeostasis and Implications in Disease" Int. J. Mol. Sci. 20, no. 5: 1034. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20051034
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