Astrocytic functions and lipid metabolism: Correlations and therapeutic targets in Alzheimer's disease and glioblastoma

作者：Xu Zhang, Rongrong Gao, Liuke Yang, Youwei Zhu, Tiancheng Zhang, Xiaorong Shen, Wenwen Gu, Yang Long, Shenjie Peng · 发表于：Clinical and Translational Discovery · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1002/ctd2.287 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Alzheimer's disease research and treatments、Cholesterol and Lipid Metabolism、Mitochondrial Function and Pathology

Abstract Background The brain is a central key organ of the body containing the second highest lipid content only after adipose tissue. Lipids as the main structural components of biological membranes play important roles in a vast number of biological processes within the brain such as energy homeostasis, material transport, signal transduction, neurogenesis and synaptogenesis, providing a balanced cellular environment required for proper functioning of brain cells. Lipids and their metabolism are of great physiological importance in view of the crucial roles of lipids in brain development and function. Astrocytes are the most abundant glial cells in the brain and involved in various processes including metabolic homeostasis, blood brain barrier maintenance, neuronal support and crosstalk. Results Disturbances in lipid metabolism and astrocytic functions may lead to pathological alterations associated with numerous neurological diseases like Alzheimer's disease (AD) recognised as the most frequent cause of dementia leading to major progressive memory and cognitive deficits as well as glioblastoma (GBM) known as the most aggressive malignant brain tumour with a poor prognosis. Conclusions Herein, we not only review the level and role of altered lipid metabolism in correlation with astrocytic function and astrocyte‐neuron crosstalk in AD and GBM, but also discuss important lipid‐related metabolites and proteins participating in possible mechanisms of pathologically dysregulate...