Are you an EPFL student looking for a semester project?
Work with us on data science and visualisation projects, and deploy your project as an app on top of Graph Search.
Concept
Subgranular zone
Summary
The subgranular zone (SGZ) is a brain region in the hippocampus where adult neurogenesis occurs. The other major site of adult neurogenesis is the subventricular zone (SVZ) in the brain.
The subgranular zone is a narrow layer of cells located between the granule cell layer and hilus of the dentate gyrus. This layer is characterized by several types of cells, the most prominent type being neural stem cells (NSCs) in various stages of development. However, in addition to NSCs, there are also astrocytes, endothelial cells, blood vessels, and other components, which form a microenvironment that supports the NSCs and regulates their proliferation, migration, and differentiation. The discovery of this complex microenvironment and its crucial role in NSC development has led some to label it as a neurogenic “niche”. It is also frequently referred to as a vascular, or angiogenic, niche due to the importance and pervasiveness of the blood vessels in the SGZ.
The brain comprises many different types of neurons, but the SGZ generates only one type: granule cells—the primary excitatory neurons in the dentate gyrus (DG)--which are thought to contribute to cognitive functions such as memory and learning. The progression from neural stem cell to granule cell in the SGZ can be described by tracing the following lineage of cell types:
Radial glial cells. Radial glial cells are a subset of astrocytes, which are typically thought of as non-neuronal support cells. The radial glial cells in the SGZ have cell bodies that reside in the SGZ and vertical (or radial) processes that extend into the molecular layer of the DG. These processes act as a scaffold upon which newly formed neurons can migrate the short distance from the SGZ to the granule cell layer. Radial glia are astrocytic in their morphology, their expression of glial markers such as GFAP, and their function in regulating the NSC microenvironment. However, unlike most astrocytes, they also act as neurogenic progenitors; in fact, they are widely considered to be the neural stem cells that give rise to subsequent neuronal precursor cells.
Official source
About this result
This page is automatically generated and may contain information that is not correct, complete, up-to-date, or relevant to your search query. The same applies to every other page on this website. Please make sure to verify the information with EPFL's official sources.
Ontological neighbourhood
Related courses (3)
BIO-480: Neuroscience: from molecular mechanisms to disease
The goal of the course is to guide students through the essential aspects of molecular neuroscience and neurodegenerative diseases. The student will gain the ability to dissect the molecular basis of
BIO-447: Stem cells and organoids
This course introduces the fundamentals of stem cell biology, with a particular focus on the role of stem cells during development, tissue homeostasis/regeneration and disease, and the generation of o
NX-450: Computational neurosciences: biophysics
The course introduces students to a synthesis of modern neuroscience and state-of-the-art data management, modelling and computing technologies with a focus on the biophysical level.
Related publications (97)
Related people (22)
Related units (8)
Related concepts (5)
Neurogenesis
Neurogenesis is the process by which nervous system cells, the neurons, are produced by neural stem cells (NSCs). It occurs in all species of animals except the porifera (sponges) and placozoans. Types of NSCs include neuroepithelial cells (NECs), radial glial cells (RGCs), basal progenitors (BPs), intermediate neuronal precursors (INPs), subventricular zone astrocytes, and subgranular zone radial astrocytes, among others.
Rostral migratory stream
The rostral migratory stream (RMS) is a specialized migratory route found in the brain of some animals along which neuronal precursors that originated in the subventricular zone (SVZ) of the brain migrate to reach the main olfactory bulb (OB). The importance of the RMS lies in its ability to refine and even change an animal's sensitivity to smells, which explains its importance and larger size in the rodent brain as compared to the human brain, as our olfactory sense is not as developed.
Reelin
'Reelin', encoded by the RELN gene, is a large secreted extracellular matrix glycoprotein that helps regulate processes of neuronal migration and positioning in the developing brain by controlling cell–cell interactions. Besides this important role in early development, reelin continues to work in the adult brain. It modulates synaptic plasticity by enhancing the induction and maintenance of long-term potentiation.