Astrocytes Belly Up to the Appetite Control Table

Neurons do not act alone in regulating appetite. They have help from glial cells, structural support elements that have, in recent years, been implicated in important brain functions. Now that they are known to enhance appetite when activated, and to suppress it when deactivated, glial cells in the brain—more specifically, astrocytes in the hypothalamus—may point to new targets for drugs against obesity and other appetite-related disorders.Astrocytes and other glial cells make up abo