Inflammation is implicated in a wide array of diseases and is associated with the ageing process: 'inflammageing' is the low-grade inflammation that occurs as an organism ages. I was particularly interested in age-related inflammation of the brain, thought to be mediated by microglia, the immune cells of the central nervous system (CNS). To this end, I carried out RNA sequencing of microglia from young (6 months) and aged mice (23 months). I found that microglia from aged mice have a very distinct transcriptome signature. Interestingly, pathways associated with mTOR signalling and inflammation were upregulated. Given the evidence that mTOR is a key modulator of ageing, I investigated its role in inflammation in microglia. Using a mouse model in which Rheb, a positive regulator of mTORC1, was knocked out in Csf1r-expressing cells (microglia and macrophages), I found that in vivo LPS stimulation caused a significant increase in the transcription of inflammatory genes in microglia from mTORC1-deficient mice compared to controls. The effect was further exaggerated in mTORC1-deficient aged mice, suggesting a role for mTORC1 in the priming of aged microglia. However, these transcriptome changes were not translated into protein; indeed, Csf1r-Cre; Rheb f/f mice showed reduced overall inflammation, as measured by sickness behaviour in the openfield test and by plasma cytokine levels. On the other hand, long-term treatment with rapamycin in vivo showed a very distinct phenotype, with reduced inflammation following LPS stimulation in young mice but no effect in aged ones. This PhD thesis sheds new light on pathways regulating microglia in ageing and has clinical implications for pathologies in which inflammation plays a major role.

Olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) are glial cells that are an attractive candidate for neural repair after spinal cord injury and for remyelination of axons in diseases such as multiple sclerosis. OECs appear to migrate within the adult mammalian central nervous system (CNS) in animal models of spinal cord injury, but until recently there has been no systematic examination of the factors inducing or guiding this migration. Previous work in our lab (V.Skihar) implicated microglial reactivity in the generation of a migratory signal(s) inducing OECs to migrate towards an ethidium bromide-induced focal demyelination in the adult rat spinal cord. The long-term objective of this research project was to test the hypothesis that reactive microglial provide a migratory signal(s) driving the migration of OECs within the spinal cord of adult rats.<p>The first set of experiments determined the time-frame in which Wallerian degeneration (WD) induced microglial reactivity occurs in the right dorsal corticospinal tract (dCST) of adult rats at the level of T11 following aspiration of the contralateral sensorimotor cortex. This timing data from this study demonstrated a prominent microglial activation in the right dCST of T11 eight weeks after sensorimotor cortex injury indicating the microglial response to WD of dCST axons was very slow to appear. The second set of experiments determined whether OECs were induced to migrate in response to WD-induced microglial reactivity in the dCST, which based on the first set of experiments was known to occur within 8 weeks of lesioning the left sensorimotor cortex. This second set of experiments also examined the migratory path taken by OECs with respect to the location of reactive microglia (i.e. inside vs outside the right dCST). For these experiments, the left sensorimotor cortex was damaged 8 weeks prior to grafting the OECs at T12. <p>The next group of experiments examined the contribution of TNF-á induced microglial reactivity to generation of a migratory signal. First we identified concentrations of TNF-á that when injected into the DF of the T11 spinal cord segment of an adult rat induced microglial reactivity either along at least a 5 mm distance from the injection site or confined to the immediate vicinity of the injection site. The result of this experiment identified a concentration of 1 ng/µl and 0.01 ng/µl TNF-á as appropriate concentrations to induce the appropriate amount of microglial reactivity, respectively. The final set of experiments used these two concentrations to determine whether TNF-á induced microglial reactivity that is initiated 5 mm rostral to a DiI+ve OEC graft generates a migratory signal(s) inducing OECs to migrate towards the rostral part of T11 and whether the migratory signal(s) was present only if the microglial reactivity extended the full 5 mm distance between the TNF-á injection and the OEC graft. <p>The major findings were: i) there was a significantly higher density of DiI+ve OECs within the right dCST of rats in which there was WD-induced microglial reactivity as compared to the right dCST of rats in which there was no microglial reactivity; ii) the migratory path taken by DiI+ve OECs was preferentially within areas containing reactive microglia (i.e. dCST) and towards the site of TNF-á induced microglial reactivity (i.e. rostral to cell graft as opposed to caudal); iii) significantly more DiI+ve OECs migrated towards the site of a TNF-á injection when the microglia were reactive along the entire length of the migratory path between the cytokine injection and cell graft; and iv) minocycline treatment both dampened microglial reactivity and significantly reduced the number of migrating DiI+ve OECs. The major conclusions are that the migration of OECs within the adult rat spinal cord occurs in response to migratory signal(s) arising as a result of microglial activation and that this migration occurs preferentially along the path of microglial reactivity.

Olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) are glial cells that are an attractive candidate for neural repair after spinal cord injury and for remyelination of axons in diseases such as multiple sclerosis. OECs appear to migrate within the adult mammalian central nervous system (CNS) in animal models of spinal cord injury, but until recently there has been no systematic examination of the factors inducing or guiding this migration. Previous work in our lab (V.Skihar) implicated microglial reactivity in the generation of a migratory signal(s) inducing OECs to migrate towards an ethidium bromide-induced focal demyelination in the adult rat spinal cord. The long-term objective of this research project was to test the hypothesis that reactive microglial provide a migratory signal(s) driving the migration of OECs within the spinal cord of adult rats.<p>The first set of experiments determined the time-frame in which Wallerian degeneration (WD) induced microglial reactivity occurs in the right dorsal corticospinal tract (dCST) of adult rats at the level of T11 following aspiration of the contralateral sensorimotor cortex. This timing data from this study demonstrated a prominent microglial activation in the right dCST of T11 eight weeks after sensorimotor cortex injury indicating the microglial response to WD of dCST axons was very slow to appear. The second set of experiments determined whether OECs were induced to migrate in response to WD-induced microglial reactivity in the dCST, which based on the first set of experiments was known to occur within 8 weeks of lesioning the left sensorimotor cortex. This second set of experiments also examined the migratory path taken by OECs with respect to the location of reactive microglia (i.e. inside vs outside the right dCST). For these experiments, the left sensorimotor cortex was damaged 8 weeks prior to grafting the OECs at T12. <p>The next group of experiments examined the contribution of TNF-á induced microglial reactivity to generation of a migratory signal. First we identified concentrations of TNF-á that when injected into the DF of the T11 spinal cord segment of an adult rat induced microglial reactivity either along at least a 5 mm distance from the injection site or confined to the immediate vicinity of the injection site. The result of this experiment identified a concentration of 1 ng/µl and 0.01 ng/µl TNF-á as appropriate concentrations to induce the appropriate amount of microglial reactivity, respectively. The final set of experiments used these two concentrations to determine whether TNF-á induced microglial reactivity that is initiated 5 mm rostral to a DiI+ve OEC graft generates a migratory signal(s) inducing OECs to migrate towards the rostral part of T11 and whether the migratory signal(s) was present only if the microglial reactivity extended the full 5 mm distance between the TNF-á injection and the OEC graft. <p>The major findings were: i) there was a significantly higher density of DiI+ve OECs within the right dCST of rats in which there was WD-induced microglial reactivity as compared to the right dCST of rats in which there was no microglial reactivity; ii) the migratory path taken by DiI+ve OECs was preferentially within areas containing reactive microglia (i.e. dCST) and towards the site of TNF-á induced microglial reactivity (i.e. rostral to cell graft as opposed to caudal); iii) significantly more DiI+ve OECs migrated towards the site of a TNF-á injection when the microglia were reactive along the entire length of the migratory path between the cytokine injection and cell graft; and iv) minocycline treatment both dampened microglial reactivity and significantly reduced the number of migrating DiI+ve OECs. The major conclusions are that the migration of OECs within the adult rat spinal cord occurs in response to migratory signal(s) arising as a result of microglial activation and that this migration occurs preferentially along the path of microglial reactivity.

Neuroinflammation and excitotoxicity are frequently regarded as the classical hallmarks of all major central nervous system (CNS) diseases such as stroke and neurodegenerative disorders. However, the limited number of current clinical options for the treatment of these diseases and the side effects associated with these treatment options indicate that there is an urgent and important need to develop drugs that delay neurological diseases. Although the molecular mechanisms underlying these neurological diseases remain poorly understood, it is widely accepted that alterations in microglia function is the key causative factor. It was recently reported that granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) and a natural marine compound, GB9, show great potential as anti-inflammatory agents. In the present study, we used a model of neuroinflammation to investigate the neuroprotective effects of G-CSF and GB9, and whether they exert an anti-neuroinflammatory effect on IFN-£^-stimulated microglia (BV2). Our results revealed that both G-CSF and GB9 attenuate the upregulation of proinflammatory mediators such as inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) in IFN-£^-stimulated microglia. Furthermore, Western blot and immunohistochemical analyses revealed that G-CSF or GB9 prevent downregulation of the glutamate transporter (Glu-Asp transporter, GLAST) and activation of the glutamate receptor in the IFN-£^-stimulated microglia. Additionally, our in vivo analyses revealed that centrally administered G-CSF could reverse the increase of OX-42 immunoactivity, which is the marker of IFN-£^-stimulated microglia. In summary, our findings support the hypotheses that G-CSF and the marine compound, GB9, possess anti-neuroinflammatory properties and could be pursued as potential therapeutic agents for CNS diseases.

Ph.D.

The presence of microglia at sites of CNS injury can potentially shift the balance between neuronal survival and death; however, the mechanisms regulating their mobilization to these sites are still poorly understood. Here I report that microglia express podosomes, short-lived, punctate organelles which adhere to and degrade extracellular matrix (ECM). Podosomes and related invadopodia of cancer cells have recently been the focus of much interest for their roles in migration and invasion. Microglial podosomes degraded ECM, providing impetus for further study of their function in microglia. Further, I report the Ca2+-activated SK3 channel as a novel component of the podosome core. While SK3 and SK4 channels are reported to play redundant roles in activated microglia (Kaushal et al., 2007; Schlichter et al., 2010), immunostaining work suggests that they are differentially regulated during microglial activation. Together, these results suggest unique functions for these channel subtypes in microglia.

The presence of microglia at sites of CNS injury can potentially shift the balance between neuronal survival and death; however, the mechanisms regulating their mobilization to these sites are still poorly understood. Here I report that microglia express podosomes, short-lived, punctate organelles which adhere to and degrade extracellular matrix (ECM). Podosomes and related invadopodia of cancer cells have recently been the focus of much interest for their roles in migration and invasion. Microglial podosomes degraded ECM, providing impetus for further study of their function in microglia. Further, I report the Ca2+-activated SK3 channel as a novel component of the podosome core. While SK3 and SK4 channels are reported to play redundant roles in activated microglia (Kaushal et al., 2007; Schlichter et al., 2010), immunostaining work suggests that they are differentially regulated during microglial activation. Together, these results suggest unique functions for these channel subtypes in microglia.

No description available.

Microglia, the resident immune cells of the central nervous system (CNS), become activated in response to danger signals given out by other cells when homeostasis has been disturbed. Microglial activation is a multifaceted phenomenon that includes numerous distinct phenotypes. The type of activation often influences the survival of surrounding CNS tissue, and thus gaining a better understanding of how microglial activation is regulated has important therapeutic implications. Currently, it is known that the phenotype of activated microglia depends on both the type of CNS insult and the specific activating agent. The aim of this thesis was to investigate the potential involvement of other determining factors. Extrinsic regulators of microglial activation, including the severity of CNS insult and the stimulation strength of activating agents, were examined. Intrinsic differences among different microglial populations, namely differences in region of origin and age of origin, were also investigated. To study microglial behavior without interference from other cells, rat primary cultures were used as the system of study. With regard to extrinsic factors, it was found that different severities of hypoxic neuronal injury induced distinct microglial phenotypes. Among the activating agents released by injured neurons, adenosine 5-triphosphate (ATP) was studied in isolation and was found to induce trophic and toxic effectors in microglia depending on the strength of ATP stimulation. In regards to intrinsic factors, it was found that microglia derived from different regions of the brain had distinct responses to activators, with cortical and hippocampal microglia generating more toxic responses than brainstem, striatal, and thalamic microglia. Microglia derived from various ages of origin also responded differentially to activators, with neonatal and aged microglia being more reactive than microglia derived from other age groups. Together, the results here present several novel concepts, that the phenotype of activated microglia are dependent not only on the type of activating stimulus, but the strength of that stimulus, and that in addition to stimuli from other cells, the regional and age differences among microglia themselves are also crucial in determining their activation phenotype.

Thesis (M.Sc.). / Written for the Dept. of Neurology and Neurosurgery. Title from title page of PDF (viewed 2008/12/07). Includes bibliographical references.