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Maheshwari U, Huang SF, Sridhar S, Keller A. The Interplay Between Brain Vascular Calcification and Microglia. Front Aging Neurosci 2022; 14:848495. [PMID: 35309892 PMCID: PMC8924545 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2022.848495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2022] [Accepted: 02/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Vascular calcifications are characterized by the ectopic deposition of calcium and phosphate in the vascular lumen or wall. They are a common finding in computed tomography scans or during autopsy and are often directly related to a pathological condition. While the pathogenesis and functional consequences of vascular calcifications have been intensively studied in some peripheral organs, vascular calcification, and its pathogenesis in the central nervous system is poorly characterized and understood. Here, we review the occurrence of vessel calcifications in the brain in the context of aging and various brain diseases. We discuss the pathomechanism of brain vascular calcification in primary familial brain calcification as an example of brain vessel calcification. A particular focus is the response of microglia to the vessel calcification in the brain and their role in the clearance of calcifications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Upasana Maheshwari
- Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neuroscience Center, Zürich University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Sheng-Fu Huang
- Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neuroscience Center, Zürich University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Sucheta Sridhar
- Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neuroscience Center, Zürich University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zürich, University of Zürich and ETH Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Annika Keller
- Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neuroscience Center, Zürich University Hospital, University of Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zürich, University of Zürich and ETH Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
- *Correspondence: Annika Keller,
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Zarb Y, Sridhar S, Nassiri S, Utz SG, Schaffenrath J, Maheshwari U, Rushing EJ, Nilsson KPR, Delorenzi M, Colonna M, Greter M, Keller A. Microglia control small vessel calcification via TREM2. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2021; 7:eabc4898. [PMID: 33637522 PMCID: PMC7909879 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abc4898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2020] [Accepted: 01/15/2021] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Microglia participate in central nervous system (CNS) development and homeostasis and are often implicated in modulating disease processes. However, less is known about the role of microglia in the biology of the neurovascular unit (NVU). In particular, data are scant on whether microglia are involved in CNS vascular pathology. In this study, we use a mouse model of primary familial brain calcification, Pdgfbret/ret , to investigate the role of microglia in calcification of the NVU. We report that microglia enclosing vessel calcifications, coined calcification-associated microglia, display a distinct activation phenotype. Pharmacological ablation of microglia with the CSF1R inhibitor PLX5622 leads to aggravated vessel calcification. Mechanistically, we show that microglia require functional TREM2 for controlling vascular calcification. Our results demonstrate that microglial activity in the setting of pathological vascular calcification is beneficial. In addition, we identify a previously unrecognized function of microglia in halting the expansion of vascular calcification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yvette Zarb
- Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neurocentre, Zurich University Hospital, Zurich University, Zürich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Sucheta Sridhar
- Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neurocentre, Zurich University Hospital, Zurich University, Zürich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Sina Nassiri
- Bioinformatics Core Facility, Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Sebastian Guido Utz
- Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Johanna Schaffenrath
- Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neurocentre, Zurich University Hospital, Zurich University, Zürich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Upasana Maheshwari
- Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neurocentre, Zurich University Hospital, Zurich University, Zürich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Elisabeth J Rushing
- Institute of Neuropathology, Zurich University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland
| | | | - Mauro Delorenzi
- Bioinformatics Core Facility, Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne, Switzerland
- Department of Oncology, University Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Marco Colonna
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Melanie Greter
- Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Annika Keller
- Department of Neurosurgery, Clinical Neurocentre, Zurich University Hospital, Zurich University, Zürich, Switzerland.
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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Lehto LJ, Sierra A, Corum CA, Zhang J, Idiyatullin D, Pitkänen A, Garwood M, Gröhn O. Detection of calcifications in vivo and ex vivo after brain injury in rat using SWIFT. Neuroimage 2012; 61:761-72. [PMID: 22425671 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2012.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2011] [Revised: 01/31/2012] [Accepted: 03/01/2012] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Calcifications represent one component of pathology in many brain diseases. With MRI, they are most often detected by exploiting negative contrast in magnitude images. Calcifications are more diamagnetic than tissue, leading to a magnetic field disturbance that can be seen in phase MR images. Most phase imaging studies use gradient recalled echo based pulse sequences. Here, the phase component of SWIFT, a virtually zero acquisition delay sequence, was used to detect calcifications ex vivo and in vivo in rat models of status epilepticus and traumatic brain injury. Calcifications were detected in phase and imaginary SWIFT images based on their dipole like magnetic field disturbances. In magnitude SWIFT images, calcifications were distinguished as hypointense and hyperintense. Hypointense calcifications showed large crystallized granules with few surrounding inflammatory cells, while hyperintense calcifications contained small granules with the presence of more inflammatory cells. The size of the calcifications in SWIFT magnitude images correlated with that in Alizarin stained histological sections. Our data indicate that SWIFT is likely to better preserve signal in the proximity of a calcification or other field perturber in comparison to gradient echo due to its short acquisition delay and broad excitation bandwidth. Furthermore, a quantitative description for the phase contrast near dipole magnetic field inhomogeneities for the SWIFT pulse sequence is given. In vivo detection of calcifications provides a tool to probe the progression of pathology in neurodegenerative diseases. In particular, it appears to provide a surrogate marker for inflammatory cells around the calcifications after brain injury.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauri Juhani Lehto
- Department of Neurobiology, Biomedical Imaging Unit, A. I. Virtanen Institute for Molecular Sciences, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland
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