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Khaing ZZ, Chandrasekaran A, Katta A, Reed MJ. The Brain and Spinal Microvasculature in Normal Aging. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2023; 78:1309-1319. [PMID: 37093786 PMCID: PMC10395569 DOI: 10.1093/gerona/glad107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 04/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Changes in the brain and spinal cord microvasculature during normal aging contribute to the "sensitive" nature of aged central nervous system tissue to ischemic insults. In this review, we will examine alterations in the central nervous system microvasculature during normal aging, which we define as aging without a dominant pathology such as neurodegenerative processes, vascular injury or disease, or trauma. We will also discuss newer technologies to improve the study of central nervous system microvascular structure and function. Microvasculature within the brain and spinal cord will be discussed separately as anatomy and physiology differ between these compartments. Lastly, we will identify critical areas for future studies as well as key unanswered questions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zin Z Khaing
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | | | - Anjali Katta
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - May J Reed
- Department of Medicine, Division of Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
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Guebel DV. Human hippocampal astrocytes: Computational dissection of their transcriptome, sexual differences and exosomes across ageing and mild-cognitive impairment. Eur J Neurosci 2023; 58:2677-2707. [PMID: 37427765 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.16081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2022] [Revised: 02/20/2023] [Accepted: 06/16/2023] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
The role of astrocytes in Alzheimer's disease is often disregarded. Hence, characterization of astrocytes along their early evolution toward Alzheimer would be greatly beneficial. However, due to their exquisite responsiveness, in vivo studies are difficult. So public microarray data of hippocampal homogenates from (healthy) young, (healthy) elder and elder with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) were subjected to re-analysis by a multi-step computational pipeline. Ontologies and pathway analyses were compared after determining the differential genes that, belonging to astrocytes, have splice forms. Likewise, the subset of molecules exportable to exosomes was also determined. The results showed that astrocyte's phenotypes changed significantly. While already 'activated' astrocytes were found in the younger group, major changes occurred during ageing (increased vascular remodelling and response to mechanical stimulus, diminished long-term potentiation and increased long-term depression). MCI's astrocytes showed some 'rejuvenated' features, but their sensitivity to shear stress was markedly lost. Importantly, most of the changes showed to be sex biassed. Men's astrocytes are enriched in a type 'endfeet-astrocytome', whereas women's astrocytes appear close to the 'scar-forming' type (prone to endothelial dysfunction, hypercholesterolemia, loss of glutamatergic synapses, Ca+2 dysregulation, hypoxia, oxidative stress and 'pro-coagulant' phenotype). In conclusion, the computational dissection of the networks based on the hippocampal gene isoforms provides a relevant proxy to in vivo astrocytes, also revealing the occurrence of sexual differences. Analyses of the astrocytic exosomes did not provide an acceptable approximation to the overall functioning of astrocytes in the hippocampus, probably due to the selective cellular mechanisms which charge the cargo molecules.
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Yang Z, Sheng X, Qin R, Chen H, Shao P, Xu H, Yao W, Zhao H, Xu Y, Bai F. Cognitive Improvement via Left Angular Gyrus-Navigated Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Inducing the Neuroplasticity of Thalamic System in Amnesic Mild Cognitive Impairment Patients. J Alzheimers Dis 2022; 86:537-551. [PMID: 35068464 DOI: 10.3233/jad-215390] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Background: Stimulating superficial brain regions highly associated with the hippocampus by repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) may improve memory of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) spectrum patients. Objective: We recruited 16 amnesic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and 6 AD patients in the study. All the patients were stimulated to the left angular gyrus, which was confirmed a strong link to the hippocampus through neuroimaging studies, by the neuro-navigated rTMS for four weeks. Methods: Automated fiber quantification using diffusion tensor imaging metrics and graph theory analysis on functional network were employed to detect the neuroplasticity of brain networks. Results: After neuro-navigated rTMS intervention, the episodic memory of aMCI patients and Montreal Cognitive Assessment score of two groups were significantly improved. Increased FA values of right anterior thalamic radiation among aMCI patients, while decreased functional network properties of thalamus subregions were observed, whereas similar changes not found in AD patients. It is worth noting that the improvement of cognition was associated with the neuroplasticity of thalamic system. Conclusion: We speculated that the rTMS intervention targeting left angular gyrus may be served as a strategy to improve cognitive impairment at the early stage of AD patients, supporting by the neuroplasticity of thalamic system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiyuan Yang
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, and The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute of Brain Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
| | - Xiaoning Sheng
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, and The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute of Brain Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
| | - Ruomeng Qin
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, and The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute of Brain Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
- Jiangsu Province Stroke Center for Diagnosis and Therapy, Nanjing, China
- Nanjing Neuropsychiatry Clinic Medical Center, Nanjing, China
| | - Haifeng Chen
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, and The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute of Brain Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
- Jiangsu Province Stroke Center for Diagnosis and Therapy, Nanjing, China
- Nanjing Neuropsychiatry Clinic Medical Center, Nanjing, China
| | - Pengfei Shao
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, and The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute of Brain Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
| | - Hengheng Xu
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, and The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute of Brain Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
| | - Weina Yao
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, China
| | - Hui Zhao
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, and The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute of Brain Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
- Jiangsu Province Stroke Center for Diagnosis and Therapy, Nanjing, China
- Nanjing Neuropsychiatry Clinic Medical Center, Nanjing, China
| | - Yun Xu
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, and The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute of Brain Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
- Jiangsu Province Stroke Center for Diagnosis and Therapy, Nanjing, China
- Nanjing Neuropsychiatry Clinic Medical Center, Nanjing, China
| | - Feng Bai
- Department of Neurology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of The Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, and The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute of Brain Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
- Jiangsu Province Stroke Center for Diagnosis and Therapy, Nanjing, China
- Nanjing Neuropsychiatry Clinic Medical Center, Nanjing, China
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First person – Daniel V. Guebel. Biol Open 2021. [PMCID: PMC8181890 DOI: 10.1242/bio.058767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
ABSTRACT
First Person is a series of interviews with the first authors of a selection of papers published in Biology Open. Daniel V. Guebel is first author on ‘Mapping the transcriptomic changes of endothelial compartment in human hippocampus across aging and mild cognitive impairment’, published in BiO.
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