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Balan I, Grusca A, Chéry SL, Materia BR, O’Buckley TK, Morrow AL. Neurosteroid [3α,5α]-3-Hydroxy-pregnan-20-one Enhances the CX3CL1-CX3CR1 Pathway in the Brain of Alcohol-Preferring Rats with Sex-Specificity. Life (Basel) 2024; 14:860. [PMID: 39063614 PMCID: PMC11277648 DOI: 10.3390/life14070860] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2024] [Revised: 06/04/2024] [Accepted: 07/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
This study investigates the impact of allopregnanolone ([3α,5α]3-hydroxypregnan-20-one or 3α,5α-tetrahydroprogesterone (3α,5α-THP); 10 mg/kg, IP) on fractalkine/CX3-C motif chemokine ligand 1 (CX3CL1) levels, associated signaling components, and markers for microglial and astrocytic cells in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) of male and female alcohol-preferring (P) rats. Previous research suggested that 3α,5α-THP enhances anti-inflammatory interleukin-10 (IL-10) cytokine production in the brains of male P rats, with no similar effect observed in females. This study reveals that 3α,5α-THP elevates CX3CL1 levels by 16% in the NAc of female P rats, with no significant changes observed in males. The increase in CX3CL1 levels induced by 3α,5α-THP was observed in females across multiple brain regions, including the NAc, amygdala, hypothalamus, and midbrain, while no significant effect was noted in males. Additionally, female P rats treated with 3α,5α-THP exhibited notable increases in CX3CL1 receptor (CX3CR1; 48%) and transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1; 24%) levels, along with heightened activation (phosphorylation) of signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1; 85%) in the NAc. Conversely, no similar alterations were observed in male P rats. Furthermore, 3α,5α-THP decreased glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) levels by 19% in both female and male P rat NAc, without affecting microglial markers ionized calcium-binding adaptor molecule 1 (IBA1) and transmembrane protein 119 (TMEM119). These findings indicate that 3α,5α-THP enhances the CX3CL1/CX3CR1 pathway in the female P rat brain but not in males, primarily influencing astrocyte reactivity, with no observed effect on microglial activation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina Balan
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (I.B.)
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Adelina Grusca
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (I.B.)
| | - Samantha Lucenell Chéry
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (I.B.)
- Neuroscience Curriculum, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Baylee R. Materia
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (I.B.)
| | - Todd K. O’Buckley
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (I.B.)
| | - A. Leslie Morrow
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (I.B.)
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
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Cabana-Puig X, Lu R, Geng S, Michaelis JS, Oakes V, Armstrong C, Testerman JC, Liao X, Alajoleen R, Appiah M, Zhang Y, Reilly CM, Li L, Luo XM. CX 3CR1 modulates SLE-associated glomerulonephritis and cardiovascular disease in MRL/lpr mice. Inflamm Res 2023; 72:1083-1097. [PMID: 37060359 PMCID: PMC10748465 DOI: 10.1007/s00011-023-01731-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2023] [Revised: 03/31/2023] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 04/16/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) often develop multi-organ damages including heart and kidney complications. We sought to better define the underlying mechanisms with a focus on the chemokine receptor CX3CR1. METHODS We generated Cx3cr1-deficient MRL/lpr lupus-prone mice through backcrossing. We then employed heterozygous intercross to generate MRL/lpr littermates that were either sufficient or deficient of CX3CR1. The mice were also treated with either Lactobacillus spp. or a high-fat diet (HFD) followed by assessments of the kidney and heart, respectively. RESULTS Cx3cr1-/- MRL/lpr mice exhibited a distinct phenotype of exacerbated glomerulonephritis compared to Cx3cr1+/+ littermates, which was associated with a decrease of spleen tolerogenic marginal zone macrophages and an increase of double-negative T cells. Interestingly, upon correction of the gut microbiota with Lactobacillus administration, the phenotype of exacerbated glomerulonephritis was reversed, suggesting that CX3CR1 controls glomerulonephritis in MRL/lpr mice through a gut microbiota-dependent mechanism. Upon treatment with HFD, Cx3cr1-/- MRL/lpr mice developed significantly more atherosclerotic plaques that were promoted by Ly6C+ monocytes. Activated monocytes expressed ICOS-L that interacted with ICOS-expressing follicular T-helper cells, which in turn facilitated a germinal center reaction to produce more autoantibodies. Through a positive feedback mechanism, the increased circulatory autoantibodies further promoted the activation of Ly6C+ monocytes and their display of ICOS-L. CONCLUSIONS We uncovered novel, Cx3cr1 deficiency-mediated pathogenic mechanisms contributing to SLE-associated glomerulonephritis and cardiovascular disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xavier Cabana-Puig
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Ran Lu
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Shuo Geng
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Jacquelyn S Michaelis
- Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Vanessa Oakes
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Caitlin Armstrong
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - James C Testerman
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Xiaofeng Liao
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Razan Alajoleen
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Michael Appiah
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Yao Zhang
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | | | - Liwu Li
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA.
| | - Xin M Luo
- Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA.
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Long DD, Zhang YZ, Liu A, Shen L, Wei HR, Lou QQ, Hu SS, Chen DY, Chai XQ, Wang D. Microglia sustain anterior cingulate cortex neuronal hyperactivity in nicotine-induced pain. J Neuroinflammation 2023; 20:81. [PMID: 36944965 PMCID: PMC10031886 DOI: 10.1186/s12974-023-02767-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 03/17/2023] [Indexed: 03/23/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Long-term smoking is a risk factor for chronic pain, and chronic nicotine exposure induces pain-like effects in rodents. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has been demonstrated to be associated with pain and substance abuse. This study aims to investigate whether ACC microglia are altered in response to chronic nicotine exposure and their interaction with ACC neurons and subsequent nicotine-induced allodynia in mice. METHODS We utilized a mouse model that was fed nicotine water for 28 days. Brain slices of the ACC were collected for morphological analysis to evaluate the impacts of chronic nicotine on microglia. In vivo calcium imaging and whole-cell patch clamp were used to record the excitability of ACC glutamatergic neurons. RESULTS Compared to the vehicle control, the branch endpoints and the length of ACC microglial processes decreased in nicotine-treated mice, coinciding with the hyperactivity of glutamatergic neurons in the ACC. Inhibition of ACC glutamatergic neurons alleviated nicotine-induced allodynia and reduced microglial activation. On the other hand, reactive microglia sustain ACC neuronal excitability in response to chronic nicotine, and pharmacological inhibition of microglia by minocycline or liposome-clodronate reduces nicotine-induced allodynia. The neuron-microglia interaction in chronic nicotine-induced allodynia is mediated by increased expression of neuronal CX3CL1, which activates microglia by acting on CX3CR1 receptors on microglial cells. CONCLUSION Together, these findings underlie a critical role of ACC microglia in the maintenance of ACC neuronal hyperactivity and resulting nociceptive hypersensitivity in chronic nicotine-treated mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan-Dan Long
- Pain Clinic, Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Yu-Zhuo Zhang
- Institute of Clinical Pharmacology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - An Liu
- Department of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China
| | - Liang Shen
- Pain Clinic, Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Hong-Rui Wei
- Department of Neurobiology, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Qian-Qian Lou
- Department of Neurobiology, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Shan-Shan Hu
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Dan-Yang Chen
- Department of Neurobiology, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Xiao-Qing Chai
- Pain Clinic, Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Di Wang
- Pain Clinic, Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), Hefei, 230001, China.
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Vargas-Soria M, García-Alloza M, Corraliza-Gómez M. Effects of diabetes on microglial physiology: a systematic review of in vitro, preclinical and clinical studies. J Neuroinflammation 2023; 20:57. [PMID: 36869375 PMCID: PMC9983227 DOI: 10.1186/s12974-023-02740-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/16/2023] [Indexed: 03/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Diabetes mellitus is a heterogeneous chronic metabolic disorder characterized by the presence of hyperglycemia, commonly preceded by a prediabetic state. The excess of blood glucose can damage multiple organs, including the brain. In fact, cognitive decline and dementia are increasingly being recognized as important comorbidities of diabetes. Despite the largely consistent link between diabetes and dementia, the underlying causes of neurodegeneration in diabetic patients remain to be elucidated. A common factor for almost all neurological disorders is neuroinflammation, a complex inflammatory process in the central nervous system for the most part orchestrated by microglial cells, the main representatives of the immune system in the brain. In this context, our research question aimed to understand how diabetes affects brain and/or retinal microglia physiology. We conducted a systematic search in PubMed and Web of Science to identify research items addressing the effects of diabetes on microglial phenotypic modulation, including critical neuroinflammatory mediators and their pathways. The literature search yielded 1327 records, including 18 patents. Based on the title and abstracts, 830 papers were screened from which 250 primary research papers met the eligibility criteria (original research articles with patients or with a strict diabetes model without comorbidities, that included direct data about microglia in the brain or retina), and 17 additional research papers were included through forward and backward citations, resulting in a total of 267 primary research articles included in the scoping systematic review. We reviewed all primary publications investigating the effects of diabetes and/or its main pathophysiological traits on microglia, including in vitro studies, preclinical models of diabetes and clinical studies on diabetic patients. Although a strict classification of microglia remains elusive given their capacity to adapt to the environment and their morphological, ultrastructural and molecular dynamism, diabetes modulates microglial phenotypic states, triggering specific responses that include upregulation of activity markers (such as Iba1, CD11b, CD68, MHC-II and F4/80), morphological shift to amoeboid shape, secretion of a wide variety of cytokines and chemokines, metabolic reprogramming and generalized increase of oxidative stress. Pathways commonly activated by diabetes-related conditions include NF-κB, NLRP3 inflammasome, fractalkine/CX3CR1, MAPKs, AGEs/RAGE and Akt/mTOR. Altogether, the detailed portrait of complex interactions between diabetes and microglia physiology presented here can be regarded as an important starting point for future research focused on the microglia-metabolism interface.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Vargas-Soria
- Division of Physiology, School of Medicine, Universidad de Cadiz, Cadiz, Spain.,Instituto de Investigacion e Innovacion en Ciencias Biomedicas de la Provincia de Cadiz (INIBICA), Cadiz, Spain
| | - Mónica García-Alloza
- Division of Physiology, School of Medicine, Universidad de Cadiz, Cadiz, Spain.,Instituto de Investigacion e Innovacion en Ciencias Biomedicas de la Provincia de Cadiz (INIBICA), Cadiz, Spain
| | - Miriam Corraliza-Gómez
- Division of Physiology, School of Medicine, Universidad de Cadiz, Cadiz, Spain. .,Instituto de Investigacion e Innovacion en Ciencias Biomedicas de la Provincia de Cadiz (INIBICA), Cadiz, Spain.
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Maurya SK, Gupta S, Mishra R. Transcriptional and epigenetic regulation of microglia in maintenance of brain homeostasis and neurodegeneration. Front Mol Neurosci 2023; 15:1072046. [PMID: 36698776 PMCID: PMC9870594 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.1072046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The emerging role of microglia in brain homeostasis, neurodegeneration, and neurodevelopmental disorders has attracted considerable interest. In addition, recent developments in microglial functions and associated pathways have shed new light on their fundamental role in the immunological surveillance of the brain. Understanding the interconnections between microglia, neurons, and non-neuronal cells have opened up additional avenues for research in this evolving field. Furthermore, the study of microglia at the transcriptional and epigenetic levels has enhanced our knowledge of these native brain immune cells. Moreover, exploring various facets of microglia biology will facilitate the early detection, treatment, and management of neurological disorders. Consequently, the present review aimed to provide comprehensive insight on microglia biology and its influence on brain development, homeostasis, management of disease, and highlights microglia as potential therapeutic targets in neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shashank Kumar Maurya
- Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India,*Correspondence: Shashank Kumar Maurya, ;
| | - Suchi Gupta
- Tech Cell Innovations Private Limited, Centre for Medical Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CMIE), All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
| | - Rajnikant Mishra
- Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
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Brain fractalkine-CX3CR1 signalling is anti-obesity system as anorexigenic and anti-inflammatory actions in diet-induced obese mice. Sci Rep 2022; 12:12604. [PMID: 35871167 PMCID: PMC9308795 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-16944-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Accepted: 07/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Fractalkine is one of the CX3C chemokine family, and it is widely expressed in the brain including the hypothalamus. In the brain, fractalkine is expressed in neurons and binds to a CX3C chemokine receptor 1 (CX3CR1) in microglia. The hypothalamus regulates energy homeostasis of which dysregulation is associated with obesity. Therefore, we examined whether fractalkine-CX3CR1 signalling involved in regulating food intake and hypothalamic inflammation associated with obesity pathogenesis. In the present study, fractalkine significantly reduced food intake induced by several experimental stimuli and significantly increased brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) mRNA expression in the hypothalamus. Moreover, tyrosine receptor kinase B (TrkB) antagonist impaired fractalkine-induced anorexigenic actions. In addition, compared with wild-type mice, CX3CR1-deficient mice showed a significant increase in food intake and a significant decrease in BDNF mRNA expression in the hypothalamus. Mice fed a high-fat diet (HFD) for 16 weeks showed hypothalamic inflammation and reduced fractalkine mRNA expression in the hypothalamus. Intracerebroventricular administration of fractalkine significantly suppressed HFD-induced hypothalamic inflammation in mice. HFD intake for 4 weeks caused hypothalamic inflammation in CX3CR1-deficient mice, but not in wild-type mice. These findings suggest that fractalkine-CX3CR1 signalling induces anorexigenic actions via activation of the BDNF-TrkB pathway and suppresses HFD-induced hypothalamic inflammation in mice.
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Chronic social instability stress down-regulates IL-10 and up-regulates CX3CR1 in tumor-bearing and non-tumor-bearing female mice. Behav Brain Res 2022; 435:114063. [PMID: 35988637 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2022.114063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2022] [Revised: 08/01/2022] [Accepted: 08/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Extensive literature has reported a link between stress and tumor progression, and between both of these factors and mental health. Despite the higher incidence of affective disorders in females and the neurochemical differences according to sex, female populations have been understudied. The aim of this study was therefore to analyze the effect of stress on tumor development in female OF1 mice. For this purpose, subjects were inoculated with B16F10 melanoma cells and exposed to the Chronic Social Instability Stress (CSIS) model. Behavioral, neurochemical and neuroendocrine parameters were analyzed. Female mice exposed to CSIS exhibited reduced body weight and increased arousal, but there was no evidence of depressive behavior or anxiety. Exposure to CSIS did not affect either corticosterone levels or tumor development, although it did provoke an imbalance in cerebral inflammatory cytokines, decreasing IL-10 expression (IL-6/IL-10 and TNF-α/IL-10); chemokines, increasing CX3CR1 expression (CX3CL1/CX3CR1); and glucocorticoid receptors, decreasing GR expression (MR/GR). In contrast, tumor development did not alter body weight and, although it did alter behavior, it did so to a much lesser extent. Tumor inoculation did not affect corticosterone levels, but increased the MR/GR ratio in the hippocampus and provoked an imbalance in cerebral inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, although differently from stress. These results underscore the need for experimental approaches that allow us to take sex differences into account when exploring this issue, since these results appear to indicate that the female response to stress is mediated by mechanisms different from those often proposed in relation to male mice.
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Inoue K. Potential significance of CX3CR1 dynamics in stress resilience against neuronal disorders. Neural Regen Res 2022; 17:2153-2156. [PMID: 35259822 PMCID: PMC9083172 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.335831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent findings have implicated inflammatory responses in the central nervous system in a variety of neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases, and the understanding and control of immunological responses could be a major factor of future therapeutic strategies for neurological disorders. Microglia, derived from myelogenous cells, respond to a number of stimuli and make immune responses, resulting in a prominent role as cells that act on inflammation in the central nervous system. Fractalkine (FKN or CX3CL1) signaling is an important factor that influences the inflammatory response of microglia. The receptor for FKN, CX3CR1, is usually expressed in microglia in the brain, and therefore the inflammatory response of microglia is modified by FKN. Reportedly, FKN often suppresses inflammatory responses in microglia and activation of its receptor may be effective in the treatment of inflammatory neurological disorders. However, it has also been suggested that inflammatory responses facilitated by FKN signaling aggravate neurological disorders. Thus, further studies are still required to resolve the conflicting interpretation of the protective or deleterious contribution of microglial FKN signaling. Yet notably, regulation of FKN signaling has recently been shown to be beneficial in the treatment of human diseases, although not neurological diseases. In addition, a CX3CR1 inhibitor has been developed and successfully tested in animal models, and it is expected to be in human clinical trials in the future. In this review, I describe the potential therapeutic consideration of microglial CX3CR1 dynamics through altered FKN signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Koichi Inoue
- Department of Integrative Anatomy, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, Japan
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