Astrocytes are the most populous glial subtype and are critical for brain function. Despite this, historically there have been few studies into the role that they may have in neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease (PD). Recently, however, several studies have determined that genes known to have a causative role in the development of PD are expressed in astrocytes and have important roles in astrocyte function. Here, we review these recent developments and discuss their impact on our understanding of the pathophysiology of PD, and the implications that this might have for its treatment.

中文翻译：

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星形胶质细胞功能障碍在帕金森病发病机制中的作用

星形胶质细胞是数量最多的神经胶质亚型，对大脑功能至关重要。尽管如此，从历史上看，关于它们在神经退行性疾病（例如帕金森病 (PD)）中可能发挥的作用的研究很少。然而，最近几项研究已经确定，已知在 PD 发展中具有致病作用的基因在星形胶质细胞中表达，并且在星形胶质细胞功能中具有重要作用。在这里，我们回顾了这些最近的发展，并讨论了它们对我们理解 PD 病理生理学的影响，以及这可能对其治疗产生的影响。