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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2015 Nov 1.
Published in final edited form as: Harv Rev Psychiatry. 2014 Nov-Dec;22(6):334–337. doi: 10.1097/HRP.0000000000000060

Figure 1. The major glial cell subtypes.

Figure 1

Line drawings of the three glial subtypes, drawn approximately to scale and depicting key features of each cell type. On the left is an astrocyte, depicted in close apposition to a blood vessel. Astrocytes have multiple processes extending in multiple directions, giving these cells a “star-like” appearance. The middle panel depicts an oligodendrocyte with a few processes wrapping around and myelinating nearby axons. Oligodendrocytes have smaller cell bodies and are more numerous than astrocytes in the brain. The panel on the right shows a microglial cell, which is oblong in appearance, with short processes extending from the cell body.