Oligodendroglial heterogeneity in time and space (NG2 glia in the CNS)

e-Neuroforum ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Leda Dimou ◽  
Michael Wegner

AbstractNG2 glia represent a neural cell population that expresses the proteoglycan NG2 and is distinct from other cell types of the central nervous system. While they generate oligodendrocytes and a subset of astrocytes during development, their progeny in the adult brain solely consists of oligodendrocytes and further NG2 glia. In the last years, it has become clear that NG2 glia represent a heterogeneous population of cells with different properties and potential. In this review we will first discuss the similarities and differences between NG2 glia of the developing and adult CNS, before we will describe the regulatory mechanisms in these cells to finally concentrate on the heterogeneity of NG2 glia under physiological and pathological conditions.

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruno P. Carreira ◽  
Caetana M. Carvalho ◽  
Inês M. Araújo

The finding that neural stem cells (NSCs) are able to divide, migrate, and differentiate into several cellular types in the adult brain raised a new hope for restorative neurology. Nitric oxide (NO), a pleiotropic signaling molecule in the central nervous system (CNS), has been described to be able to modulate neurogenesis, acting as a pro- or antineurogenic agent. Some authors suggest that NO is a physiological inhibitor of neurogenesis, while others described NO to favor neurogenesis, particularly under inflammatory conditions. Thus, targeting the NO system may be a powerful strategy to control the formation of new neurons. However, the exact mechanisms by which NO regulates neural proliferation and differentiation are not yet completely clarified. In this paper we will discuss the potential interest of the modulation of the NO system for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases or other pathological conditions that may affect the CNS.


2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yadaly Gassama ◽  
Alexandre Favereaux

Extracellular vesicles or EVs are secreted by most, if not all, eukaryote cell types and recaptured by neighboring or distant cells. Their cargo, composed of a vast diversity of proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids, supports the EVs’ inter-cellular communication. The role of EVs in many cellular processes is now well documented both in physiological and pathological conditions. In this review, we focus on the role of EVs in the central nervous system (CNS) in physiological as well as pathological conditions such as neurodegenerative diseases or brain cancers. We also discuss the future of EVs in clinical research, in particular, their value as biomarkers as well as innovative therapeutic agents. While an increasing number of studies reveal EV research as a promising field, progress in the standardization of protocols and innovation in analysis as well as in research tools is needed to make a breakthrough in our understanding of their impact in the pathophysiology of the brain.


2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (37) ◽  
pp. 6384-6406 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zuo Zhang ◽  
Hongli Zhou ◽  
Jiyin Zhou

NG2-glia, also called Oligodendrocyte Precursor Cells (OPCs), account for approximately 5%-10% of the cells in the developing and adult brain and constitute the fifth major cell population in the central nervous system. NG2-glia express receptors and ion channels involved in rapid modulation of neuronal activities and signaling with neuronal synapses, which have functional significance in both physiological and pathological states. NG2-glia participate in quick signaling with peripheral neurons via direct synaptic touches in the developing and mature central nervous system. These distinctive glia perform the unique function of proliferating and differentiating into oligodendrocytes in the early developing brain, which is critical for axon myelin formation. In response to injury, NG2-glia can proliferate, migrate to the lesions, and differentiate into oligodendrocytes to form new myelin sheaths, which wrap around damaged axons and result in functional recovery. The capacity of NG2-glia to regulate their behavior and dynamics in response to neuronal activity and disease indicate their critical role in myelin preservation and remodeling in the physiological state and in repair in the pathological state. In this review, we provide a detailed summary of the characteristics of NG2-glia, including their heterogeneity, the regulators of their proliferation, and the modulators of their differentiation into oligodendrocytes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mar Pacheco-Herrero ◽  
Luis O. Soto-Rojas ◽  
Charles R. Harrington ◽  
Yazmin M. Flores-Martinez ◽  
Marcos M. Villegas-Rojas ◽  
...  

The current pandemic caused by the new severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has become a public health emergency. To date, March 1, 2021, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused about 114 million accumulated cases and 2.53 million deaths worldwide. Previous pieces of evidence suggest that SARS-CoV-2 may affect the central nervous system (CNS) and cause neurological symptoms in COVID-19 patients. It is also known that angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2), the primary receptor for SARS-CoV-2 infection, is expressed in different brain areas and cell types. Thus, it is hypothesized that infection by this virus could generate or exacerbate neuropathological alterations. However, the molecular mechanisms that link COVID-19 disease and nerve damage are unclear. In this review, we describe the routes of SARS-CoV-2 invasion into the central nervous system. We also analyze the neuropathologic mechanisms underlying this viral infection, and their potential relationship with the neurological manifestations described in patients with COVID-19, and the appearance or exacerbation of some neurodegenerative diseases.


2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Davide Marangon ◽  
Nicolò Caporale ◽  
Marta Boccazzi ◽  
Maria P. Abbracchio ◽  
Giuseppe Testa ◽  
...  

Myelin is the lipidic insulating structure enwrapping axons and allowing fast saltatory nerve conduction. In the central nervous system, myelin sheath is the result of the complex packaging of multilamellar extensions of oligodendrocyte (OL) membranes. Before reaching myelinating capabilities, OLs undergo a very precise program of differentiation and maturation that starts from OL precursor cells (OPCs). In the last 20 years, the biology of OPCs and their behavior under pathological conditions have been studied through several experimental models. When co-cultured with neurons, OPCs undergo terminal maturation and produce myelin tracts around axons, allowing to investigate myelination in response to exogenous stimuli in a very simple in vitro system. On the other hand, in vivo models more closely reproducing some of the features of human pathophysiology enabled to assess the consequences of demyelination and the molecular mechanisms of remyelination, and they are often used to validate the effect of pharmacological agents. However, they are very complex, and not suitable for large scale drug discovery screening. Recent advances in cell reprogramming, biophysics and bioengineering have allowed impressive improvements in the methodological approaches to study brain physiology and myelination. Rat and mouse OPCs can be replaced by human OPCs obtained by induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from healthy or diseased individuals, thus offering unprecedented possibilities for personalized disease modeling and treatment. OPCs and neural cells can be also artificially assembled, using 3D-printed culture chambers and biomaterial scaffolds, which allow modeling cell-to-cell interactions in a highly controlled manner. Interestingly, scaffold stiffness can be adopted to reproduce the mechanosensory properties assumed by tissues in physiological or pathological conditions. Moreover, the recent development of iPSC-derived 3D brain cultures, called organoids, has made it possible to study key aspects of embryonic brain development, such as neuronal differentiation, maturation and network formation in temporal dynamics that are inaccessible to traditional in vitro cultures. Despite the huge potential of organoids, their application to myelination studies is still in its infancy. In this review, we shall summarize the novel most relevant experimental approaches and their implications for the identification of remyelinating agents for human diseases such as multiple sclerosis.


‘Neuroanatomy and neurophysiology’ covers the anatomy and organization of the central nervous system, including the skull and cervical vertebrae, the meninges, the blood and lymphatic vessels, muscles and nerves of the head and neck, and the structures of the eye, ear, and central nervous system. At a cellular level, the different cell types and the mechanism of transmission across synapses are considered, including excitatory and inhibitory synapses. This is followed by a review of the major control and sensory systems (including movement, information processing, locomotion, reflexes, and the main five senses of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell). The integration of these processes into higher functions (such as sleep, consciousness and coma, emotion, memory, and ageing) is discussed, along with the causes and treatments of disorders of diseases such as depression, schizophrenia, epilepsy, addiction, and degenerative diseases.


Author(s):  
Gordon M. Shepherd ◽  
Michele Migliore ◽  
Francesco Cavarretta

The olfactory bulb is the site of the first synaptic processing of the olfactory input from the nose. It is present in all vertebrates (except cetaceans) and a the analogous antennal lobe in most invertebrates. With its sharply demarcated cell types and histological layers, and some well-studied synaptic interactions, it is one of the first and clearest examples of the microcircuit concept in the central nervous system. The olfactory bulb microcircuit receives the information in the sensory domain and transforms it into information in the neural domain. Traditionally, it has been considered analogous to the retina in processing its sensory input, but that has been replaced by the view that it is more similar to the thalamus or primary visual cortex in processing its multidimensional input. This chapter describes the main synaptic connections and functional operations and how they provide the output to the olfactory cortex


Cells ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 437 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edoardo Parrella ◽  
Vanessa Porrini ◽  
Marina Benarese ◽  
Marina Pizzi

Mast cells (MCs) are densely granulated perivascular resident cells of hematopoietic origin. Through the release of preformed mediators stored in their granules and newly synthesized molecules, they are able to initiate, modulate, and prolong the immune response upon activation. Their presence in the central nervous system (CNS) has been documented for more than a century. Over the years, MCs have been associated with various neuroinflammatory conditions of CNS, including stroke. They can exacerbate CNS damage in models of ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke by amplifying the inflammatory responses and promoting brain–blood barrier disruption, brain edema, extravasation, and hemorrhage. Here, we review the role of these peculiar cells in the pathophysiology of stroke, in both immature and adult brain. Further, we discuss the role of MCs as potential targets for the treatment of stroke and the compounds potentially active as MCs modulators.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document