Glial exosomes containing Hsp70 support axons

What is it about?

We review historical and current observations showing that glial support axonal structure and function includes the transfer of glial cytoplasmic proteins into the interior of the axon. Those transferred glial proteins include those called stress or heat shock proteins that help axons resist metabolic stress and trauma.

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Why is it important?

The fact that cytoplasmic heat shock proteins, especially Hsp70, can be released by cells and enhance the stress tolerance of other cells was not appreciated until recently. Numerous observations now show that exosomes and other types of extracellular vesicles serve as vehicles for the transfer of these cytoprotective proteins from glial cells to adjacent axons and is likely to be vital for the functional support of long axons because they lack the capacity to locally synthesize those proteins.