Metabolism of primary astrocytes studied by NMR: metabolic trafficking and neuroprotection

Dissertation presented to obtain a Ph. D. degree in Biochemistry by Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica.

The human brain is the product of 600 million years of evolution and it is by far the most complex structure in the known universe. The vertebrates’ brain is composed of several different cell types, which perform the different functions required. The two most abundant cell types are neurons, which are the brain function unit, and glial cells, which are responsible for a myriad of housekeeping, homeostatic and structural functions. Glial metabolism is so far interconnected with the neuronal metabolism, that it is difficult to state where one finishes and the other starts. Trafficking between the two compartments include metabolites of almost all metabolic pathways (glycolysis, TCA, amino acids, ketone bodies, etc) and also ions.(...)

Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia – PRAXIS XXI, for the financial support that made this doctoral work possible (PRAXIS XXI/BD/21532/99).