Chronic running and a corticosterone treatment attenuate astrocyte-like neural stem cell proliferation in the area postrema of the adult mouse brain.

The discovery of neural stem cells (NSCs) in the adult mammalian brain has provided insights into an extra level of brain plasticity. The proliferation and differentiation of NSCs is modulated by various physiological, pathological, and pharmacological stimuli. NSCs were recently detected in the medulla oblongata of adult rodents and humans; however, their functional significance currently remains unknown.