Age-Associated Upregulation of Glutamate Transporters and Glutamine Synthetase in Senescent Astrocytes In Vitro and in the Mouse and Human Hippocampus

Aging is marked by complex and progressive physiological changes, including in the glutamatergic system, that lead to a decline of brain function. Increased content of senescent cells in the brain, such as glial cells, has been reported to impact cognition both in animal models and human tissue during normal aging and in the context of neurodegenerative disease. Changes in the glutamatergic synaptic activity rely on the glutamate-glutamine cycle, in which astrocytes handle glutamate taken up from synapses and provide glutamine for neurons, thus maintaining excitatory neurotransmission. However, the mechanisms of glutamate homeostasis in brain aging are still poorly understood. Herein, we showed that mouse senescent astrocytes in vitro undergo upregulation of GLT-1, GLAST, and glutamine synthetase (GS), along with the increased enzymatic activity of GS and [³H]-D-aspartate uptake. Furthermore, we observed higher levels of GS and increased [³H]-D-aspartate uptake in the hippocampus of aged mice, although the activity of GS was similar between young and old mice. Analysis of a previously available RNAseq dataset of mice at different ages revealed upregulation of GLAST and GS mRNA levels in hippocampal astrocytes during aging. Corroborating these rodent data, we showed an increased number of GS + cells, and GS and GLT-1 levels/intensity in the hippocampus of elderly humans. Our data suggest that aged astrocytes undergo molecular and functional changes that control glutamate-glutamine homeostasis upon brain aging.

Loss of lamin-B1 and defective nuclear morphology are hallmarks of astrocyte senescence in vitro and in the aging human hippocampus

The increase in senescent cells in tissues, including the brain, is a general feature of normal aging and age-related pathologies. Senescent cells exhibit a specific phenotype, which includes an altered nuclear morphology and transcriptomic changes. Astrocytes undergo senescence in vitro and in age-associated neurodegenerative diseases, but little is known about whether this process also occurs in physiological aging, as well as its functional implication. Here, we investigated astrocyte senescence in vitro, in old mouse brains, and in post-mortem human brain tissue of elderly. We identified a significant loss of lamin-B1, a major component of the nuclear lamina, as a hallmark of senescent astrocytes. We showed a severe reduction of lamin-B1 in the dentate gyrus of aged mice, including in hippocampal astrocytes, and in the granular cell layer of the hippocampus of post-mortem human tissue from non-demented elderly. The lamin-B1 reduction was associated with nuclear deformations, represented by an increased incidence of invaginated nuclei and loss of nuclear circularity in senescent astrocytes in vitro and in the aging human hippocampus. We also found differences in lamin-B1 levels and astrocyte nuclear morphology between the granular cell layer and polymorphic layer in the elderly human hippocampus, suggesting an intra-regional-dependent aging response of human astrocytes. Moreover, we described senescence-associated impaired neuritogenic and synaptogenic capacity of mouse astrocytes. Our findings show that reduction of lamin-B1 is a conserved feature of hippocampal cells aging, including astrocytes, and shed light on significant defects in nuclear lamina structure which may contribute to astrocyte dysfunctions during aging.

Heterogeneity in Synaptogenic Profile of Astrocytes from Different Brain Regions

Astrocytes, the most abundant glial cells in the central nervous system (CNS), comprise a heterogeneous population of cells. However, how this heterogeneity impacts their function within brain homeostasis and response to injury and disease is still largely unknown. Recently, astrocytes have been recognized as important regulators of synapse formation and maturation. Here, we analyzed the synaptogenic property of astrocytes from different regions of the CNS. The effect of conditioned medium derived from astrocytes (astrocyte-conditioned medium (ACM)) from cerebral cortex, hippocampus, midbrain and cerebellum, in synapse formation, was evaluated. Synapse formation was analyzed by quantification of pre- and postsynaptic proteins, synaptophysin, and postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD-95). ACM from the four regions increased significantly the number of synaptophysin/PSD-95 puncta on neurons from the same and different brain regions. Differences on astrocytic synaptogenic potential between the regions were observed according to ACM protein concentration. Thus, cerebellar astrocytes have higher synaptogenic effect when ACM is less concentrated. Also, heterotypical co-culture assays revealed that neurons from cerebral cortex and midbrain equally respond to ACM, indicating that differences in synapse effect are unlike to be neuron-autonomous. The expression profile of the synaptogenic molecules secreted by astrocytes from distinct brain regions was analyzed by qPCR. Gene expression of glypicans 4 and 6, hevin, and secreted protein-acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) greatly varies between astrocytes from different brain regions. Furthermore, in vivo analysis of hevin protein confirmed that variance. These findings highlight the heterogeneity of astrocytes and suggest that their synaptogenic potential may be different in each brain region, mainly due to distinct gene expression profiles.