Publication at First Faculty of Medicine |
2010
Abstract
In the recent years, research on interneurons and their phenotypical characteristics is one of the most rapidly growing fields in neuroscience. In the mammalian neocortex, the calcium-binding protein calretinin is expressed in a subset of neocortical neurons.
This review summarizes the actual knowledge of the functions of calretinin in neuronal homeostasis and particularly of the distribution, connectivity and physiological properties of calretinin expressing intderneurons in the mammalian neocortex. The possible neuroprotective role of calretinin and the presumed „ resistence „ of calretinin-expressing interneurons to various pathological processes are also discussed..