Local production of astrocytes in the cerebral cortex

Astrocytes are the largest glial population in the mammalian brain. Astrocytes in the cerebral cortex are reportedly generated from four sources, namely radial glia, progenitors in the subventricular zone (SVZ progenitors), locally proliferating glia, and NG2 glia; it remains an open question, however, as to what extent these four cell types contribute to the substantial increase in astrocytes that occurs postnatally in the cerebral cortex. Here we summarize all possible sources of astrocytes and discuss their roles in this postnatal increase. In particular, we focus on astrocytes derived from local proliferation within the cortex.