Resumen: Interlaminar astrocytes (ILA) are a subtype of astrocytes present in the cerebral cortex, with a soma in layer I and long interlaminar processes running perpendicularly to the pia into deeper cortical layers. We previously examined the cerebral cortex from 46 species encompassing most orders of therian mammalians. We characterized ILA as pial and subpial (with specific somatic morphology, position within layer I and presence across species). We also described “rudimentary pial ILA” with short GFAP+ processes that do not exit layer I, and “typical pial ILA”, with longer GFAP+ processes crossing layer I-II border. We found that pial ILA express astrocyte markers and do not express other cell-specific markers, and that they present the highest density and complexity in Primates (Falcone et al, 19). ILA were known to be present and develop postnatally, but when exactly they appear during development is not known. We provided evidence for ILA prenatal origin in primates, described the stem cell and astrocyte markers expressed by ILAs through their developmental progression, and investigated their functional role.

Bio: Verónica Martínez-Cerdeño, is an Associate Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at UC Davis School of Medicine and Faculty at the Institute of Pediatric Regenerative Medicine, the Shriners Hospital for Children of Northern California, and the MIND Institute. She is a CAMPOS Scholar who was selected for her leadership potential to impact their STEM discipline in profound and enduring ways. She has published more than 70 peer-reviewed articles and participated in seven books. She has been and is Primary Investigator (PI) for multiple NIH (R01s) and other grants and is a member of the NIH Neurogenesis and Cell Fate Study Section. She is external adviser for the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine. She is the Director of the UC Davis Fragile X/FXTAS brain repository, and the Founder and Director for CENE -Banco hispano-americano de cerebros de enfermedades del neurodesarrollo - The Hispano-American Brain Bank for Neurodevelopmental Diseases- the first brain bank for neurodevelopmental conditions in Latino-America, with nodes in California, México, Colombia, and Puerto Rico. She is also the Founder and CEO of The Ventricular Foundation, a non-profit organization that teaches about the benefit of outreach activities and science, to students of all ages, the scientific community, and the public in general, with emphasis in underrepresented students. She is the co-Founder and Scientific director of LUNAS (Latinos Unidos Navegando el Autismo y Servicios) project, a multimedia community approach to empower multilanguage parents to educate, navigate, and be successful at obtaining all the services available to their children affected by autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in California. 

Fecha y hora: Viernes, 13 de marzo de 2020, 13 horas.

Lugar: Sala de Juntas, Departamento de Anatomía, Histología y Neurociencia.