Olfactory Astrocytes (OA)

Olfactory astrocytes were isolated from olfactory bulb. The olfactory bulb is an oval mass of gray matter located at the front of the brain hemisphere and belongs to the olfactory brain. Astrocytes are the most widely distributed type of cells in the mammalian brain and the largest type of glial cells in volume. The classical metal dipping technique (silver staining) showed that these glial cells were star-shaped, and many long branched protrusions emanated from the cell body, extended and filled between the cell body and its protrusions, and played the role of supporting and separating nerve cells. Astrocytes have many protrusions, which extend and fill between the cell body of nerve cells and its protrusions, play the role of supporting and separating nerve cells, and participate in the formation of blood-brain barrier. Because astrocytes can produce and secrete certain neurotransmitters and express certain neurotransmitter receptors, they can respond to some neuroactive substances. In addition, astrocytes can biotransform exogenous compounds and help regulate the ionic microenvironment around neurons.