Unit:
Κατεύθυνση ΝευροεπιστήμεςLibrary of the School of Science
Author:
Fortosi Alexandra-Ourania
Supervisors info:
Κυραργύρη Βασιλική, Μεταδιδακτορική ερευνήτρια, Ελληνικό Ινστιτούτο Παστερ
Original Title:
Microglia acquire region-specific morphologies in the grey matter during cuprizone-induced demyelination and remyelination that reflect disease progression and are independent of the potassium channel THIK1
Translated title:
Microglia acquire region-specific morphologies in the grey matter during cuprizone-induced demyelination and remyelination that reflect disease progression and are independent of the potassium channel THIK1
Summary:
Microglia have been for long considered as a relatively homogenous cellular component of the central nervous system (CNS) characterized by remarkable plasticity, facilitating the efficient transaction of a variety of functions in health and disease. Recently, high-throughput single-cell RNA sequencing studies, highlighted the heterogenous nature of microglia and argue for the emergence of transcriptionally and functionally distinct microglial subsets under physiological and pathological conditions. In this study, we used a novel cell-based and semi-automated bioinformatics approach and performed a detailed spatiotemporal assessment of microglial morphology at different grey matter areas during cuprizone-induced demyelination and remyelination. Our results confirm the existence of specialized microglial phenotypes and suggest that microglial morphology may provide an early indication of demyelination at the grey matter. Importantly, microglia of the upper cortical layers 2/3 acquire a hyper-ramified morphology at the peak of demyelination and during recovery, while their processes become less motile, suggesting that microglial dynamics undergo homeostatic regulations in the recovery phase to preserve stable surveillance with possible neuroprotective functions.
Main subject category:
Science
Keywords:
microglia, cuprizone, Multiple Sclerosis, demyelination, remyelination, heterogeneity, morphology, dynamics
Number of references:
124
