Overview:

Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP) was discovered as a major fibrous protein of multiple sclerosis plaques (1). It was subsequently found to be a member of the 10nm or intermediate filament (IF) family, specifically the IF family Class III, which also includes peripherin, desmin and vimentin. GFAP is strongly and specifically expressed in astrocytes and certain other astroglia in the CNS, in satellite cells, peripheral ganglia, and in non-myelinating Schwann cells in peripheral nerves. In many damage and disease states GFAP expression is heavily upregulated in astrocytes. In addition, neural stem cells frequently strongly express GFAP. Point mutations in the protein coding region of the GFAP gene lead to Alexander disease which is characterized by the presence of abnormal astrocytes containing GFAP protein aggregates known as Rosenthal fibers (2).

References:

1. Bignami A, Eng LF, Dahl D, Uyeda CT. Localization of the glial fibrillary acidic protein in astrocytes by immunofluorescence. Brain Res. 43:429-35 (1972).

2. Brenner M, Johnson AB, Boespflug-Tanguy O, Rodriguez D, Goldman JE and Messing A. Mutations in GFAP, encoding glial fibrillary acidic protein, are associated with Alexander disease. Nat Genet 27:117-20 (2001).