Signaling to and from radial glia

Radial glia represent the major glial cell type in the developing CNS and perform many essential functions, which range from acting as neural precursors to providing physical substrates for newborn neurons to migrate on. Previous work has shown that cell-cell signaling is important for the development of the radial glial phenotype. In particular, signals from newborn neurons appear to contribute significantly to the formation of this cell type. In addition, radial glia may be involved in reciprocal signaling roles that contribute to regional patterning and differentiation in the developing CNS. (C) 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.