Is Galanin a Promising Therapeutic Resource for Neural and Nonneural Diseases?

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (9) ◽  
pp. 922-929
Author(s):  
Caroline Maria Oliveira Volpe ◽  
Tatiana Vaz ◽  
Fabiana Rocha-Silva ◽  
Pedro Henrique Villar-Delfino ◽  
José Augusto Nogueira-Machado

Background: Galanin (GAL) constitutes a family of neuropeptides composed of four peptides: (i) galanin (GAL), (ii) galanin-message associated peptide (GAMP), (iii) galanin-like peptide (GALP), and (iv) alarin. GAL contains 29/30 amino acids, and its biological action occurs through the interactions with its various receptors (GALR1, GALR2, and GALR3). The neuropeptide GAL regulates several physiological and pathophysiological functions in the central nervous system, the peripheral nervous system, and the peripheral organs. GAL is secreted mainly by oligodendrocytes, astrocytes, and the gastrointestinal tract, and its effect depends on the interaction with its different receptors. These receptors are expressed mainly in the central, peripheral nervous systems and the intestines. Objective: The present review evaluates the role of GAL family in inflammatory diseases. An overview is given of the signaling and pharmacological effects due to the interaction between GAL and GALR in different cell types. The potential use of GAL as a therapeutic resource is critically discussed. Conclusion: GAL is suggested to have an anti-inflammatory function in some situations and a proinflammatory function in others. The literature on GAL is controversial and currently not conclusive. This could be due to the complexity of the metabolic network signaling induced by the interactions between GAL and GALR. In the next future, GAL might be a promising therapeutic resource for several diseases, but its practical use for disease control is presently not advisable.

‘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):  
Christian J. Hendriksz ◽  
Francois Karstens

There are 8 different types of diseases of the mucopolysaccharides, each caused by a deficiency in one of 10 different enzymes involved in the degradation of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). Partially degraded GAGs accumulate within the lysosomes of many different cell types and lead to clinical symptoms and excretion of large amounts of GAGs in the urine. Heritability is autosomal recessive except for MPS type II, which is X-linked. The disorders are chronic and progressive and, although the specific types all have their individual features, they share an abundance of clinical similarities. All involve the musculoskeletal, the cardiovascular, the pulmonary and the central nervous system.


1982 ◽  
Vol 60 (7) ◽  
pp. 1037-1045 ◽  
Author(s):  
William J. Racz ◽  
Laurie J. S. Vandewater

Methylmercury is a widespread and highly toxic environmental pollutant. The source of the substance in the environment is industrial and agricultural use. Chronic methylmercury poisoning is characterized by peripheral and central nervous system damage. The rate of absorption and distribution of this organomercurial into neural tissue determines the rate of development and the severity of the neural lesion. Furthermore, the rate of metabolism and excretion of an organomercurial will greatly influence its neural toxicity. There are differences in the accumulation of methylmercury in different regions of the brain, as well as by the different cell types in these regions. The significance of this variable accumulation of methylmercury is not known. Methylmercury influences a large number of neurocellular functions ranging from inhibition of membrane integrity to alteration in the synthesis and release of transmitter substances.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (56) ◽  
pp. eaaz6563 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tommy Regen ◽  
Sandrine Isaac ◽  
Ana Amorim ◽  
Nicolás Gonzalo Núñez ◽  
Judith Hauptmann ◽  
...  

Interleukin-17A– (IL-17A) and IL-17F–producing CD4+ T helper cells (TH17 cells) are implicated in the development of chronic inflammatory diseases, such as multiple sclerosis and its animal model, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). TH17 cells also orchestrate leukocyte invasion of the central nervous system (CNS) and subsequent tissue damage. However, the role of IL-17A and IL-17F as effector cytokines is still confused with the encephalitogenic function of the cells that produce these cytokines, namely, TH17 cells, fueling a long-standing debate in the neuroimmunology field. Here, we demonstrated that mice deficient for IL-17A/F lose their susceptibility to EAE, which correlated with an altered composition of their gut microbiota. However, loss of IL-17A/F in TH cells did not diminish their encephalitogenic capacity. Reconstitution of a wild-type–like intestinal microbiota or reintroduction of IL-17A specifically into the gut epithelium of IL-17A/F–deficient mice reestablished their susceptibility to EAE. Thus, our data demonstrated that IL-17A and IL-17F are not encephalitogenic mediators but rather modulators of intestinal homeostasis that indirectly alter CNS-directed autoimmunity.


Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 2963
Author(s):  
Grace Y. Sun ◽  
Xue Geng ◽  
Tao Teng ◽  
Bo Yang ◽  
Michael K. Appenteng ◽  
...  

Phospholipids are major components in the lipid bilayer of cell membranes. These molecules are comprised of two acyl or alkyl groups and different phospho-base groups linked to the glycerol backbone. Over the years, substantial interest has focused on metabolism of phospholipids by phospholipases and the role of their metabolic products in mediating cell functions. The high levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in the central nervous system (CNS) have led to studies centered on phospholipases A2 (PLA2s), enzymes responsible for cleaving the acyl groups at the sn-2 position of the phospholipids and resulting in production of PUFA and lysophospholipids. Among the many subtypes of PLA2s, studies have centered on three major types of PLA2s, namely, the calcium-dependent cytosolic cPLA2, the calcium-independent iPLA2 and the secretory sPLA2. These PLA2s are different in their molecular structures, cellular localization and, thus, production of lipid mediators with diverse functions. In the past, studies on specific role of PLA2 on cells in the CNS are limited, partly because of the complex cellular make-up of the nervous tissue. However, understanding of the molecular actions of these PLA2s have improved with recent advances in techniques for separation and isolation of specific cell types in the brain tissue as well as development of sensitive molecular tools for analyses of proteins and lipids. A major goal here is to summarize recent studies on the characteristics and dynamic roles of the three major types of PLA2s and their oxidative products towards brain health and neurological disorders.


Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 2353
Author(s):  
Maja Potokar ◽  
Jernej Jorgačevski

Plectin, a high-molecular-mass cytolinker, is abundantly expressed in the central nervous system (CNS). Currently, a limited amount of data about plectin in the CNS prevents us from seeing the complete picture of how plectin affects the functioning of the CNS as a whole. Yet, by analogy to its role in other tissues, it is anticipated that, in the CNS, plectin also functions as the key cytoskeleton interlinking molecule. Thus, it is likely involved in signalling processes, thereby affecting numerous fundamental functions in the brain and spinal cord. Versatile direct and indirect interactions of plectin with cytoskeletal filaments and enzymes in the cells of the CNS in normal physiological and in pathologic conditions remain to be fully addressed. Several pathologies of the CNS related to plectin have been discovered in patients with plectinopathies. However, in view of plectin as an integrator of a cohesive mesh of cellular proteins, it is important that the role of plectin is also considered in other CNS pathologies. This review summarizes the current knowledge of plectin in the CNS, focusing on plectin isoforms that have been detected in the CNS, along with its expression profile and distribution alongside diverse cytoskeleton filaments in CNS cell types. Considering that the bidirectional communication between neurons and glial cells, especially astrocytes, is crucial for proper functioning of the CNS, we place particular emphasis on the known roles of plectin in neurons, and we propose possible roles of plectin in astrocytes.


1990 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 405-407 ◽  
Author(s):  
CAROLE RICKARDS ◽  
JACK HAM ◽  
RICHARD FITZGERALD ◽  
MAURICE F. SCANLON

2007 ◽  
Vol 28 (5) ◽  
pp. 521-574 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rainer H. Straub

There is still an unresolved paradox with respect to the immunomodulating role of estrogens. On one side, we recognize inhibition of bone resorption and suppression of inflammation in several animal models of chronic inflammatory diseases. On the other hand, we realize the immunosupportive role of estrogens in trauma/sepsis and the proinflammatory effects in some chronic autoimmune diseases in humans. This review examines possible causes for this paradox. This review delineates how the effects of estrogens are dependent on criteria such as: 1) the immune stimulus (foreign antigens or autoantigens) and subsequent antigen-specific immune responses (e.g., T cell inhibited by estrogens vs. activation of B cell); 2) the cell types involved during different phases of the disease; 3) the target organ with its specific microenvironment; 4) timing of 17β-estradiol administration in relation to the disease course (and the reproductive status of a woman); 5) the concentration of estrogens; 6) the variability in expression of estrogen receptor α and β depending on the microenvironment and the cell type; and 7) intracellular metabolism of estrogens leading to important biologically active metabolites with quite different anti- and proinflammatory function. Also mentioned are systemic supersystems such as the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, the sensory nervous system, and the sympathetic nervous system and how they are influenced by estrogens. This review reinforces the concept that estrogens have antiinflammatory but also proinflammatory roles depending on above-mentioned criteria. It also explains that a uniform concept as to the action of estrogens cannot be found for all inflammatory diseases due to the enormous variable responses of immune and repair systems.


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