MODULATION OF THE ELECTRICAL DIFFERENTIATION OF NEURONS BY INTERACTIONS WITH GLIA AND OTHER NONNEURONAL CELLS

Glial cells have long been recognized as participating in development of neural tissue by providing a scaffolding for migration and by synth esis and secretion of a variety of growth factors and extracellular ma trix components. An additional role for glia and other non-neuronal ce lls in the electrical differentiation of neurons has been suggested by several recent articles, in particular a group that has focused on th e potassium currents that influence action potential repolarization an d repetitive activity. In this review I present examples of developmen tal regulation of potassium currents by interactions with non-neuronal cells and discuss some implications of this regulation.