Crym-positive striatal astrocytes gate perseverative behaviour. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38418885/)

These scientists wanted to understand more about a type of brain cell called astrocytes and how they affect our behavior. They found a specific group of astrocytes in the brain that produce a protein called mu-crystallin, which is linked to certain brain disorders. To study this further, they used a special tool called CRISPR-Cas9 to remove the mu-crystallin protein from these astrocytes in mice.

When they did this, they noticed that the mice started behaving in a repetitive way and had changes in how their brain cells communicated with each other. They discovered that the astrocytes with mu-crystallin normally help control the release of chemicals in the brain that affect our behavior. By using another method to block this chemical release, they were able to reverse the repetitive behavior and fix the communication problems in the brain.

This study shows that these specific astrocytes play an important role in our brain function and behavior. Understanding how they work could help scientists develop new treatments for certain brain disorders.

Ollivier M., Soto JS., Linker KE., Moye SL., Jami-Alahmadi Y., Jones AE., Divakaruni AS., Kawaguchi R., Wohlschlegel JA., Khakh BS. Crym-positive striatal astrocytes gate perseverative behaviour. Nature. 2024 Feb 28. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07138-0.