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Mourtzi T, Antoniou N, Dimitriou C, Gkaravelas P, Athanasopoulou G, Kostantzo PN, Stathi O, Theodorou E, Anesti M, Matsas R, Angelatou F, Kouroupi G, Kazanis I. Enhancement of endogenous midbrain neurogenesis by microneurotrophin BNN-20 after neural progenitor grafting in a mouse model of nigral degeneration. Neural Regen Res 2024; 19:1318-1324. [PMID: 37905881 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.385314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 11/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract
JOURNAL/nrgr/04.03/01300535-202406000-00036/inline-graphic1/v/2023-10-30T152229Z/r/image-tiff
We have previously shown the neuroprotective and pro-neurogenic activity of microneurotrophin BNN-20 in the substantia nigra of the “weaver” mouse, a model of progressive nigrostriatal degeneration. Here, we extended our investigation in two clinically-relevant ways. First, we assessed the effects of BNN-20 on human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural progenitor cells and neurons derived from healthy and parkinsonian donors. Second, we assessed if BNN-20 can boost the outcome of mouse neural progenitor cell intranigral transplantations in weaver mice, at late stages of degeneration. We found that BNN-20 has limited direct effects on cultured human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural progenitor cells, marginally enhancing their differentiation towards neurons and partially reversing the pathological phenotype of dopaminergic neurons generated from parkinsonian donors. In agreement, we found no effects of BNN-20 on the mouse neural progenitor cells grafted in the substantia nigra of weaver mice. However, the graft strongly induced an endogenous neurogenic response throughout the midbrain, which was significantly enhanced by the administration of microneurotrophin BNN-20. Our results provide straightforward evidence of the existence of an endogenous midbrain neurogenic system that can be specifically strengthened by BNN-20. Interestingly, the lack of major similar activity on cultured human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural progenitors and their progeny reveals the in vivo specificity of the aforementioned pro-neurogenic effect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Theodora Mourtzi
- Laboratory of Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
| | - Nasia Antoniou
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology-Stem Cells, Hellenic Pasteur Institute, Athens, Greece
| | - Christina Dimitriou
- Laboratory of Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
| | - Panagiotis Gkaravelas
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology-Stem Cells, Hellenic Pasteur Institute, Athens, Greece
| | - Georgia Athanasopoulou
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology-Stem Cells, Hellenic Pasteur Institute, Athens, Greece
| | - Panagiota Nti Kostantzo
- Laboratory of Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
| | - Olga Stathi
- Laboratory of Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
| | - Efthymia Theodorou
- Laboratory of Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
| | - Maria Anesti
- Laboratory of Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
| | - Rebecca Matsas
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology-Stem Cells, Hellenic Pasteur Institute, Athens, Greece
| | - Fevronia Angelatou
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
| | - Georgia Kouroupi
- Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology-Stem Cells, Hellenic Pasteur Institute, Athens, Greece
| | - Ilias Kazanis
- Laboratory of Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
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