TY - JOUR T1 - Astrocytes Prevent Abnormal Neuronal Development in the Fragile X Mouse JF - The Journal of Neuroscience JO - J. Neurosci. SP - 4508 LP - 4514 DO - 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5027-09.2010 VL - 30 IS - 12 AU - Shelley Jacobs AU - Laurie C. Doering Y1 - 2010/03/24 UR - http://www.jneurosci.org/content/30/12/4508.abstract N2 - Astrocytes are now distinguished as major regulators of neuronal growth and synaptic development. Recently, they have been identified as key players in the progression of a number of developmental disorders; however, in fragile X syndrome (FXS), the role of astrocytes is not known. Using a coculture design, we found that hippocampal neurons exhibited abnormal dendritic morphology and a decreased number of presynaptic and postsynaptic protein aggregates when they were grown on astrocytes from a fragile X mouse. Moreover, we found that normal astrocytes could prevent the development of abnormal dendrite morphology and preclude the reduction of presynaptic and postsynaptic protein clusters in neurons from a fragile X mouse. These experiments are the first to establish a role for astrocytes in the altered neurobiology of FXS. Our results support the notion that astrocytes contribute to abnormal dendrite morphology and the dysregulated synapse development in FXS. ER -