Similarly, a recent study showed that EAAT2 is selectively expressed in cortical layer V neurons that are damaged in premature infants with PVL [48] and hypothesised that the reversal of glutamate transport by EAAT2 together with hyperactivation of ionotropic glutamate receptors contribute to excess ambient glutamate and consequently cell death specifically in these neurons [49]. Here, SLC1A2 is linked to periventricular leukomalacia.