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Section of central canal of medulla spinalis, showing ependymal and neuroglial cells.
Photomicrograph of hematoxylin stained section of normal ependymal cells at 400x magnification. Human autopsy tissue
Gray's p.829
MeSH A08.
TA A14.1.00.022
Anatomical terminology

Ependyma is the thin epithelium-like lining of the ventricular system of the brain and the central canal of the spinal cord. Ependyma is one of the four types of neuroglia in the central nervous system (CNS). It is involved in the production of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).

Ependymal Cells[edit]

The ependyma is made up of ependymal cells, ependymocytes, a type of glial cell. These cells line the CSF-filled ventricles in the brain and the central canal of the spinal cord. The cells are ciliated simple columnar[1] epithelium-like cells. Their apical surfaces are covered in a layer of cilia, which circulate CSF around the CNS. Their apical surfaces are also covered with microvilli, which absorb CSF. Ependymal cells also produce CSF. Within the ventricles of the brain, a population of modified ependymal cells and capillaries together form a system called the choroid plexus, which produces the CSF.

Modified tight junctions between ependymal cells control fluid release across the epithelium. This release allows free exchange between CSF and nervous tissue of brain and spinal cord. This is why sampling of CSF (e.g. through a "spinal tap") provides a window to the CNS.

The basal membrane of these cells are characterized by tentacle-like extensions that attach to astrocytes.


Ependymoma is a tumor of the ependymal cells most commonly found in the fourth ventricle.

Primary cells[edit]

Jonas Frisén and his colleagues at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm provided evidence that ependymal cells act as reservoir cells in the forebrain, which can be activated after stroke and as in vivo and in vitro stem cells in the spinal cord. However, these cells did not self-renew and were subsequently depleted as they generated new neurons, thus failing to satisfy the requirement for stem cells.[2][3] One study observed that ependymal cells from the lining of the lateral ventricle might be a source for cells which can be transplanted into the cochlea to reverse hearing loss.[4]

Ependyma and Neurodegeneration[edit]

In 2004, Dr. Milan Radojicic proposed the stem cell niche disruption hypothesis, highlighting the role of local ischemia, cerebrospinal fluid dynamics and cytotoxic factors in disrupting the ependymal stromal epithelium, along with periependymal stem/progenitor cells, thereby tipping the balance between injury and self-repair (i.e., neurogenesis and gliogenesis) in the central nervous system toward further degeneration over time.[citation needed]

See also[edit]


  1. ^ Hitsology, a text in atlas, M. Ross 2011, 6th edition page 367
  2. ^ Johansson CB, Momma S, Clarke DL, Risling M, Lendahl U, Frisen J (1999). "Identification of a neural stem cell in the adult mammalian central nervous system". Cell 96 (1): 25–34. doi:10.1016/S0092-8674(00)80956-3. PMID 9989494. 
  3. ^ Carlén M, Meletis K, Göritz C, Darsalia V, Evergren E, Tanigaki K, Amendola M, Barnabé-Heider F, Yeung MS, Naldini L, Honjo T, Kokaia Z, Shupliakov O, Cassidy RM, Lindvall O, Frisén J. (2009). "Forebrain ependymal cells are Notch-dependent and generate neuroblasts and astrocytes after stroke.". Nature Neuroscience 12 (3): 259–267. doi:10.1038/nn.2268. PMID 19234458. 
  4. ^ "Brain cell hope for hearing loss". BBC News. 2008-12-09. Retrieved 2008-12-09. 

External links[edit]