Glial glutamate transport as target for nitric oxide: consequences for neurotoxicity

Overwhelming evidence suggest that accumulations of extracellular glutamate are toxic to neurons. It has also been proposed that astrocytes protect neurons from glutamate toxicity by removal of glutamate from extracellular space. By using co-cultures of hippocampal neurons and astrocytes, we studied the influence of astrocytes on neuronal excitotoxicity. Moreover, we evaluated the role of nitric oxide and pro-inflammatory cytokines on astrocytic glutamate transport.