Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor and is the first member of the GDNF family of ligands (GFL) found. Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor has been shown to interact with GFRA2 and GDNF family receptor alpha 1. GDNF has regenerative properties for brain cells and showed potential as treatment for Parkinson's disease - monkeys with an induced form of Parkinson's disease showed less trembling when treated with the drug, and neuronal fibres grew in part of the human brain exposed to the drug. However progress to a treatment is hampered by the problem of delivering the drug to brain cells through the blood-brain barrier in human.
Satellite glial cell physiological properties, such as the presence of neurotransmitter transporters and the expression of glutamine synthetase. However, there are distinguishing factors that put SGCs in their own distinct category of glial cells. SGCs most often surround individual sensory and parasympathetic neurons with a complete, unbroken sheath while most neurons of sympathetic ganglia lack a completely continuous SGC sheath, allowing for limited direct exchange of materials between the extracellular space of the neuron and the space within the connective tissue where the SGCs are situated. Furthermore, gap junctions exist between SGCs in the sheaths of adjacent neurons as well as between SGCs