Properties that help Müller glia achieve this function include a limited number mitochondria (which are very light scattering), as well as a specialized arrangement of internal protein filaments.

[9] Müller glia are the predominant type of macroglia in the retina, so they take on many of the supportive functions that astrocytes and oligodendrocytes usually handle in the rest of the central nervous system.

"[9] Bergmann glia have multiple radial processes that extend across the molecular layer of the cerebellar cortex and terminate at the pial surface as a bulbous endfoot.

[14] Following Purkinje cell death induced by CNS injury, Bergmann glia undergo extensive proliferative changes so as to replace lost or damaged tissue in a process known as gliosis.

Additionally, recent evidence suggests that cues from the external sensory environment can also influence the proliferation and neural differentiation of radial glia.

[9][24] At the conclusion of cortical development, most radial glia lose their attachment to the ventricles, and migrate towards the surface of the cortex, where, in mammals, most will become astrocytes during the process of gliogenesis.

This role can be easily visualized using the electron microscope or high-resolution time-lapse microscopy, through which neurons can be seen tightly wrapped around radial glia as they travel upwards through the cortex.

Mutations in either Lis1 or Nde1, essential proteins for radial glial differentiation and stabilization, cause the associated neurodevelopmental diseases Lissencephaly and microlissencephaly (which literally translate to “smooth brain”).

Extreme cases of Lissencephaly cause death a few months after birth, while patients with milder forms may experience mental retardation, difficulty balancing, motor and speech deficits, and epilepsy.

[28] Epidemiological evidence indicates infection of the embryo within the first two trimesters of pregnancy has potential to cause fetal birth defects and microcephaly,[29] possibly due to the death of progenitor cells.

[31] Despite the initial period of interest in radial glia, little additional information was learned about these cells until the electron microscope and immunohistochemistry became available some 60 years later.