Aspects of Astrocyte Energy Metabolism, Amino Acid Neurotransmitter Homoeostasis and Metabolic Compartmentation
Marko Kreft,
Lasse K Bak,
Helle S Waagepetersen,
Arne Schousboe
Affiliations
Marko Kreft
LN-MCP, Institute of Pathophysiology, Faculty of Medicine and CPAE, Department of Biology, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana and Celica Biomedical Center, Slovenia
Lasse K Bak
Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
Helle S Waagepetersen
Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
Arne Schousboe
Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
Astrocytes are key players in brain function; they are intimately involved in neuronal signalling processes and their metabolism is tightly coupled to that of neurons. In the present review, we will be concerned with a discussion of aspects of astrocyte metabolism, including energy-generating pathways and amino acid homoeostasis. A discussion of the impact that uptake of neurotransmitter glutamate may have on these pathways is included along with a section on metabolic compartmentation.
