Visualizing the Brain’s Astrocytes with Diverse Chemical Scaffolds

Astrocytes are the most abundant cells in the brain. They support neurons, adjust synaptic strength, and modulate neuronal signaling, yet the full extent of their functions is obscured by the dearth of methods for their visualization and analysis. Here, we report a chemical reporter that targets small molecules specifically to astrocytes both in vitro and in vivo. Fluorescent versions of this tag are imported through an organic cation transporter to label glia across species. The structural modularity of this approach will enable wide-ranging applications for understanding astrocyte biology.