DEVELOPMENT AND FUNCTION OF EMBRYONIC CENTRAL-NERVOUS-SYSTEM GLIAL-CELLS IN DROSOPHILA

Each abdominal neuromere of a Drosophila embryo contains about 60 glia l cells [Klambt C, Goodman CS (1991): Glia 4:205-213; Ito et al. (1995 ): Roux's Arch Dev Biol, 204:284-307]. Among these, the midline and lo ngitudinal glia are described to some detail. The midline glia are loc ated dorsally in the nerve cord ensheathing the two segmental commissu res. They are required for the proper establishment of commissures. Th e longitudinal glia, the A and B glia, and the segment boundary cells (SBC) are covering the longitudinal connectives. The longitudinal glia prefigure longitudinal axon paths and appear capable of regulating th e expression of neuronal antigens. In the following we summarize the k nowledge on the function of these glial cells. (C) 1996 Wiley-iiss, In c.