Glia
Expression of proinflammatory molecules by glial cells is involved in the pathophysiological changes associated with chronic neurological diseases. Under pathological conditions, astrocytes release a number of proinflammatory molecules, such as interleukin‐6 (IL‐6) and interferon‐γ‐inducible protein‐10 (IP‐10). The ovarian hormone estradiol exerts protective effects in the central nervous system that,...
Endogenously generated hydrogen sulfide (H2S) may have multiple functions in brain. It has been shown that H2S attenuates the expression of pro‐inflammatory cytokines by lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐activated microglia. Here we demonstrate a neuroprotective effect of NaSH and three H2S‐releasing compounds, ADT‐OH, S‐diclofenac, and S‐aspirin. When activated by LPS and γ‐interferon, human microglia and...
Astrocytes are well known modulators of normal developmental retinal vascularization. However, relatively little is known about the role of glial cells during pathological retinal neovascularization (NV), a leading contributor to vision loss in industrialized nations. We demonstrate that the loss of astrocytes and microglia directly correlates with the development of pathological NV in a mouse model...
Cathepsin B (CB) is a cysteine lysosomal protease implicated in a number of inflammatory diseases. Although it is now evident that caspase‐1, an essential enzyme for maturation of interleukin‐1β (IL‐1β), can be activated through the inflammasome, there is still evidence suggesting the existence of lysosomal‐proinflammatory caspase pathways. In the present study, a marked induction of pro‐IL‐1β, its...
NG2‐glia are an abundant population of cells in the adult CNS that make up a novel glial cell type. Here, we have examined calcium signals in NG2‐glia identified by expression of the fluorescent protein DsRed under the control of the NG2 promoter in the white matter of the mouse optic nerve. We focused on mice aged postnatal day (P)12–16, after the main period of oligodendrocyte generation. Using...
Brain microglia are related to peripheral macrophages but undergo a highly specific process of regional maturation and differentiation inside the brain. Here, we examined this deactivation and morphological differentiation in cerebral cortex and periventricular subcortical white matter, the main “fountain of microglia” site, during postnatal mouse development, 0–28 days after birth (P0–P28). Only...
Rouget, in 1873, was the first to describe a population of cells surrounding capillaries, which he regarded as contractile elements. Fifty years later, Zimmermann termed these cells “pericytes” and distinguished three subtypes along the vascular tree. Since then, the discussion concerning the contractile ability of pericytes has never ceased. Current concepts of pericyte biology rather suggest critical...
Schwann cells are the myelinating glia cells of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) and can become targets of an autoimmune response in inflammatory neuropathies like the Guillain‐Barré syndrome (GBS). Professional antigen presenting cells (APCs) are known to promote autoimmune responses in target tissues by presenting self‐antigens. Other cell types could participate in local autoimmune responses...
Axons are linked to induction of myelination during development and to the maintenance of myelin and myelinated tracts in the adult CNS. Currently, it is unknown whether and how axonal plasticity in adult CNS impacts the myelinating cells and their precursors. In this article, we report that newly formed axonal sprouts are able to induce a protracted myelination response in adult CNS. We show that...
Hemin, which is toxic to brain cells, has been reported to be taken up by cultured astrocytes; however, the mechanism of uptake is currently unknown. The present study investigated the mechanism of hemin uptake by rat primary astrocyte cultures. In medium containing 10% fetal calf serum, cultured astrocytes failed to accumulate significant amounts of heme‐iron, while in serum‐free medium the accumulation...
The endocannabinoid system exhibits anti‐inflammatory properties by regulating cytokine production. Anandamide (AEA) down‐regulates proinflammatory cytokines in a viral model of multiple sclerosis (MS). However, little is known about the mechanisms by which AEA exerts these effects. Microglial cells are the main source of cytokines within the brain and the first barrier of defense against pathogens...
Wernicke encephalopathy (WE), a neurological disorder caused by thiamine deficiency (TD), is characterized by structural damage in brain regions that include the thalamus and cerebral cortex. The basis for these lesions is unclear, but may involve a disturbance of glutamatergic neurotransmission. We have therefore investigated levels of the astrocytic glutamate transporters EAAT1 and EAAT2 in order...
Interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ) is a pleiotropic cytokine that is critically involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory demyelinating diseases. There is strong evidence that IFN‐γ can function as a distinct and independent injurious factor to oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs). The intracellular signaling pathways leading to OPC death, however, remain poorly understood. In this study, we examined...
The rostral migratory stream (RMS) is a well defined migratory pathway for precursors of olfactory bulb (OB) interneurons. Throughout the RMS an intense astroglial matrix surrounds the migratory cells. However, it is not clear to what extent the astroglial matrix participates in migration. Here, we have analyzed the migratory behavior of neuroblasts cultured on monolayers of astrocytes isolated from...
Damage to the brain and spinal cord leads to permanent functional disability because of the very limited capacity of the central nervous system (CNS) for repair. Transplantation of cells into regions of CNS damage represents one approach to enhancing this repair. At present, the ideal cell type for transplant‐mediated repair has not been identified but autologous transplantation would be advantageous...
Astrocytes have important immune functions in CNS, and astrocytes stimulated by interferon‐γ were showed to have direct antimicrobial function. However whether astrocytes without the stimulation of cytokines have antibacterial function, and how this function is regulated are still largely unknown. In this study, we found that primary cultured astrocytes inhibited the growth of both gram‐negative and...
TPPP/p25, a recently identified tubulin polymerization‐promoting protein (TPPP), is expressed mainly in myelinating oligodendrocytes of the CNS. Here, we show that TPPP/p25 is strongly upregulated during the differentiation of primary oligodendrocyte cells as well as the CG‐4 cell line. The microRNA expression profile of CG‐4 cells before and after induction of differentiation was established and...
Through undefined mechanisms, dominant mutations in (Cu/Zn) superoxide dismutase‐1 (mSOD1) cause the non‐cell‐autonomous death of motoneurons in inherited amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Microgliosis at sites of motoneuron injury is a neuropathological hallmark of ALS. Extracellular mutant SOD1 (mSOD1) causes motoneuron injury and triggers microgliosis in spinal cord cultures, but it is unclear...
Neurosteroids are synthesized either by glial cells, by neurons, or within the context of neuron‐glia cross‐talk. Various studies suggested neurosteroid involvement in the control of neurodegeneration but there is no evidence showing that the natural protection of nerve cells against apoptosis directly depends on their own capacity to produce neuroprotective neurosteroids. Here, we investigated the...
Aquaporin‐4 (AQP4) is the principle water channel and the primary route for water transport across astrocytic membranes. AQP4 co‐localizes with Kir4.1 channels at astrocytic endfeet, and it has been suggested that these channels cooperate in K+ and water homeostasis. In response to injury, two additional aquaporins, AQP1 and AQP9, can be detected in astrocytes, yet neither is found in cultured astrocytes,...