Light of the stars:calcium signals light up astrocytes in the presence of autoreactive CD4+T cells

Introduction:Astrocytes play important roles in the central nervous system(CNS)to support and regulate CNS function.They are abundant type of glia that form a meshwork of interconnected cells almost completely tiling the CNS.Each astrocyte extends densely ramified processes that establish close contacts and interaction with other astrocytes,neurons and blood vessels,placing these cells in an ideal position to control extracellular milieu and to exert global effects on CNS physiology.