Sam Schmidt Paralysis Foundation a cell body, which houses the nucleus. Axons and dendrites form extensions from the cell body. Glial cells are "nerve-helper" cells that provide structural support, nourishment and protection for neurons. Astrocytes, a kind of glial cell, are the primary support cells of the brain and spinal cord. They make and secrete proteins called neurotrophic factors, which assist in the maintenance of nerve cells in the central nervous system. They also break down and remove proteins or chemicals that might be harmful to neurons (for example, glutamate, a neurotransmitter that in excess causes cells to become overexcited and die by a
Satellite glial cell structure very similar to the cilia of neurons, Schwann cells, and astrocytes of the CNS. Satellite glial cells in sensory ganglia are laminar cells that most often an envelope of multiple SGCs completely surrounds each sensory neuron. The number of SGCs that make up the sheath increases proportionately with the volume of the neuron which it surrounds. Additionally, the volume of the sheath itself increases proportionately with the volume and surface area of the neuron’s somata. The distance of extracellular space between the sheath and the neuronal plasma membrane measures , allowing the neuron and its SGC sheath to form