1
|
Šimončičová E, Gonçalves de Andrade E, Vecchiarelli HA, Awogbindin IO, Delage CI, Tremblay MÈ. Present and future of microglial pharmacology. Trends Pharmacol Sci 2022; 43:669-685. [PMID: 35031144 DOI: 10.1016/j.tips.2021.11.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2021] [Revised: 10/28/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Microglia, brain resident immune cells, modulate development, activity, and plasticity of the central nervous system. Mechanistically implicated in numerous neurological pathologies, microglia emerge as strong contenders for novel neurotherapies. Shifting away from merely an attenuation of excessive microglial inflammatory and phagocytic activities, current therapies aim toward targeting the complex context-dependent microglial heterogeneity, unveiled by large-scale genetic studies and emerging single-cell analyses. Although lacking the necessary selectivity, initial therapies attempting to target specific state-associated microglial properties and functions (e.g., inflammatory activity, phagocytosis, proliferation, metabolism, or surveillance) are currently under pre- or even clinical (Phase I-IV) investigation. Here, we provide an update on current microglial therapeutic research and discuss what the future in the field might look like.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eva Šimončičová
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada; Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
| | - Elisa Gonçalves de Andrade
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada; Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
| | | | - Ifeoluwa O Awogbindin
- Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada; Neuroimmunology Group, Molecular Drug Metabolism and Toxicology Laboratory, Department of Biochemistry, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria
| | - Charlotte I Delage
- Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
| | - Marie-Ève Tremblay
- Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada; Axe Neurosciences, Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Université Laval, Québec City, QC, Canada; Neurology and Neurosurgery Department, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada; Department of Molecular Medicine, Université Laval, Québec City, QC, Canada; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada; Centre for Advanced Materials and Related Technology (CAMTEC), University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Delage CI, Nys G, Fillet M, Cornil CA. Effect of cyclo‑oxygenase inhibition on embryonic microglia and the sexual differentiation of the brain and behavior of Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica). Horm Behav 2021; 134:105024. [PMID: 34256221 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2021.105024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2021] [Revised: 05/25/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Enduring sex differences in the brain are established during a developmental process known as brain sexual differentiation and are mainly driven by estrogens during a critical period. In rodents, the masculinization of the preoptic area by estrogens derived from the central aromatization of testosterone depends in part on the interaction between microglia and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), a pro-inflammatory hormone of the prostanoid subclass. In contrast, in birds, estrogens produced by females induce a demasculinization, but whether an interaction with the neuro-immune system is involved in this process is unknown. This study addressed this question by testing the effects of blockade of cyclo‑oxygenases (COX), the rate-limiting enzymes for prostanoid synthesis, on embryonic microglia and the sexual differentiation of brain and behavior using the Japanese quail as an animal model. The results show that COX inhibition does not affect the behavior of females, but impairs male sexual behavior and suppresses the sex difference in microglial profiles at embryonic day 12 (E12) in the medial preoptic nucleus by increasing the number of microglia in males only. However, neither prostanoid concentrations nor PGE2 receptors differed between sexes in the hypothalamus and preoptic area (HPOA) during development. Overall, these results uncovered a potential role of prostanoids in the demasculinization of Japanese quail. Moreover, the parallel effect of COX inhibition on behavior and microglia suggests an interaction between prostanoids and microglia in brain demasculinization, thus fueling the hypothesis of a conserved role of the neuroimmune system in the organization of the brain by estrogens.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte I Delage
- Laboratory of Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, GIGA Neurosciences, University of Liege, Belgium
| | - Gwenael Nys
- Laboratory for the Analysis of Medicines, Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Medicines (CIRM), University of Liège, Belgium
| | - Marianne Fillet
- Laboratory for the Analysis of Medicines, Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Medicines (CIRM), University of Liège, Belgium
| | - Charlotte A Cornil
- Laboratory of Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, GIGA Neurosciences, University of Liege, Belgium.
| |
Collapse
|