title: Glial cell regulation of rhythmic behavior.
abstract: Brain glial cells, in particular astrocytes and microglia, secrete signaling molecules that regulate glia-glia or glia-neuron communication and synaptic activity. While much is known about roles of glial cells in nervous system development, we are only beginning to understand the physiological functions of such cells in the adult brain. Studies in vertebrate and invertebrate models, in particular mice and Drosophila, have revealed roles of glia-neuron communication in the modulation of complex behavior. This chapter emphasizes recent evidence from studies of rodents and Drosophila that highlight the importance of glial cells and similarities or differences in the neural circuits regulating circadian rhythms and sleep in the two models. The chapter discusses cellular, molecular, and genetic approaches that have been useful in these models for understanding how glia-neuron communication contributes to the regulation of rhythmic behavior.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Sackler Program in Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA. Electronic address: rob.jackson@tufts.edu.
authors.forename: F Rob
authors.initials: FR
authors.lastname: Jackson
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Sackler Program in Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Fanny S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Sackler Program in Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Sukanya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sengupta
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Sackler Program in Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: You
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Sackler Program in Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Yanmei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D004330:Drosophila / Q000502:physiology*; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction; D012890:Sleep
keywords: Activity rhythm; Astrocyte; Circadian; Drosophila; Glia; Gliotransmitter; Mice; Microglia; Sleep; Translational profiling; microRNA