Human astrocytes differ morphologically, functionally, and in their gene expression patterns from murine astrocytes. The astrocytic heterogeneity and complexity observed in the mouse brain are multiplied in humans, evident in primate-specific astrocyte populations and region-specific subtypes reflecting diverse molecular programs and environmental factors in the human brain. Astrocytes also contribute to the evolutionary processes associated with an increase in brain size and enhancing cognitive function. In this review, astrocyte differentiation and function are described to frame the processes that make human astrocytes specific, and whose disturbances can lead to brain pathology, as revealed by rapidly- evolving stem cell-based technology employed in human astrocyte studies.
Kousa et al. (Wed,) studied this question.