Glia of the heart's nervous system

The heart adapts to changing physiological demands through bidirectional interactions with the brain. These are mediated via extensive feedback loops of the cardiac autonomic nervous system, a complex network of neurons and glial cells. Although the presence of glia in the heart and its nervous system has been known for decades, only recently has an understanding of their contribution to cardiac physiology and pathophysiology emerged. As new types of cardiac glia are discovered, it becomes evident that they represent heterogeneous cell populations in distinct anatomical locations of the cardiac nervous system, contributing not only to autonomic control of the healthy heart but also to pathological changes in the diseased heart.