GLIA - THE NOT SO INNOCENT BYSTANDERS

Activated glial cells (microglia and astrocytes) are a hallmark of a v ariety of neurodegenerative diseases. Recent in vitro studies have sug gested that mediators derived from reactive glial cells (eg, cytokines , reactive oxygen intermediates, nitric oxide, glutamate or quinolinic acids, and neurotoxins) contribute to neuronal injury. Several of the se mediators have been implicated in the neuropathogenesis of HIV-1. A lthough the precise role of glial cell-mediated neurotoxicity in viral infections of the central nervous system has not been established, it is hoped that research in this field will yield new therapies for the se infections as well as for immune-mediated neurodegenerative disease s.