dull gial cell rises to stardom

German pathologist Rudolf Virchow discovered the glial cell in 1856 while searching for connective tissue in the brain. In comparison to the dazzling neuron with its beautiful structure and interesting activity the glial cell seemed rather dull. A small, stubby cell quite inactive and without a clear task.

For many decades, research of the nervous system has been focused on neurons despite the fact that glial cells far outnumber neurons by about 1 to 10. As they are only 1/10 of the size of neurons they constitute fifty percent of the nervous system with neurons making up the other fifty percent.

“Glial cells are critical participants in every major aspect of brain development, function, and disease”, says Ben Barres, neurobiologist at Stanford University. “Far more active than once thought, glial cells powerfully control synapse formation, function, and blood flow. They secrete many substances whose roles are not understood, and they are central players in CNS injury and disease.”

A count of cells in the brain of famous physicist Albert Einstein, performed by professor Marian Diamond of the University of California, produced an interesting result: Einstein’s brain had far more glial cells than those of 11 other men, specially in the left inferior parietal area, which is involved in higher cognitive functions.