Tanycyte

A glia cell type of the human nervous system.

Hypothalamic ependymal-glial cell lining the third ventricle that senses CSF- and blood-borne metabolic and hormonal signals and helps regulate energy balance.

Function

Hypothalamic ventricular glia that sense metabolic and hormonal signals, mediate CSF-hypothalamus exchange (shuttling/gating nutrients and hormones), and contribute to energy-balance regulation; some populations act as adult neural stem/progenitor cells (species/region/context dependent).

Morphology

Ependymal-like cuboidal soma at the ventricular wall with a single long basal radial process; non-ciliated (beta) to partially ciliated subtypes

Specification

  • Receptors: Insulin receptor; Leptin receptor
  • Location: Floor and lateral walls of the third ventricle (mediobasal hypothalamus); processes reach the median eminence and hypothalamic nuclei
  • Projections: Single long radial process into hypothalamic parenchyma (arcuate/ventromedial nuclei) and toward the median eminence / fenestrated capillaries
  • Firing: Non-spiking
  • Markers: RAX; VIM (vimentin); NES (nestin); SOX2; GFAP (some, dorsal/alpha); TSHR and DIO2 (neuroendocrine roles); DARPP-32/PPP1R1B (subtype-qualified)
  • Developmental origin: Neural tube / radial glia lineage (retain radial-glial-like properties into adulthood)
  • Disease: Obesity; Metabolic syndrome (hypothalamic nutrient-sensing dysfunction); roles also implicated in reproduction and cognitive aging
  • Cell Ontology: CL:0002085

References

  1. Rodriguez-Cortes B et al. (2025). Tanycytes: bloodhounds of the metabolic brain.. Trends in endocrinology and metabolism: TEM PMID 41176453
  2. Langlet F (2019). Tanycyte Gene Expression Dynamics in the Regulation of Energy Homeostasis.. Frontiers in endocrinology 10 PMID 31133987
  3. Elizondo-Vega RJ, Recabal A, & Oyarce K (2019). Nutrient Sensing by Hypothalamic Tanycytes.. Frontiers in endocrinology 10 PMID 31040827

Loading interactive 3D atlas…