Notch1 and Galectin-3 Modulate Cortical Reactive Astrocyte Response After Brain Injury.

After a brain lesion, highly specialized cortical astrocytes react, supporting the closure or replacement of the damaged tissue, but fail to regulate neural plasticity. Growing evidence indicates that repair response leads astrocytes to reprogram, acquiring a partially restricted regenerative phenotype and neural stem cells (NSC) hallmarks . However, the molecular factors involved in astrocyte reactivity, the reparative response, and their relation to adult neurogenesis are poorly understood and remain an area of intense investigation in regenerative medicine.