Impact of the gut microbiome on nicotine's motivational effects and glial cells in the ventral tegmental area in male mice.

A link between gut dysbiosis and the pathogenesis of brain disorders has been identified. A role for gut bacteria in drug reward and addiction has been suggested but very few studies have investigated their impact on brain and behavioral responses to addictive drugs so far. In particular, their influence on nicotine's addiction-like processes remains unknown. In addition, evidence shows that glial cells shape the neuronal activity of the mesolimbic system but their regulation, within this system, by the gut microbiome is not established. We demonstrate that a lack of gut microbiota in male mice potentiates the nicotine-induced activation of sub-regions of the mesolimbic system. We further show that gut microbiota depletion enhances the response to nicotine of dopaminergic neurons of the posterior ventral tegmental area (pVTA), and alters nicotine's rewarding and aversive effects in an intra-VTA self-administration procedure. These effects were not associated with gross behavioral alterations and the nicotine withdrawal syndrome was not impacted. We further show that depletion of the gut microbiome modulates the glial cells of the mesolimbic system. Notably, it increases the number of astrocytes selectively in the pVTA, and the expression of postsynaptic density protein 95 in both VTA sub-regions, without altering the density of the astrocytic glutamatergic transporter GLT1. Finally, we identify several sub-populations of microglia in the VTA that differ between its anterior and posterior sub-parts, and show that they are re-organized in conditions of gut microbiota depletion. The present study paves the way for refining our understanding of the pathophysiology of nicotine addiction.

Combined analysis of TERT, EGFR, and IDH status defines distinct prognostic glioblastoma classes.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the prognostic significance of TERT promoter mutations (TERTp-mut) and their associations with common molecular alterations in glioblastomas (GBMs). METHODS: We sequenced the TERTp-mut in DNA from 395 GBMs and analyzed the results with their respective histology, genetic profile (IDH1 mutation, EGFR amplification, CDKN2A homozygous deletion, loss of chromosome 10, TP53 mutation), and overall survival (OS). RESULTS: TERTp-mut were found in 299 of 395 GBMs (75.7%) and were associated with an older age (median 59.6 years for TERTp-mut vs 53.6 years for TERT promoter wild type [TERTp-wt], p < 0.0001). TERTp-mut was an independent factor of poor prognosis (OS = 13.8 vs 18.4 months), in both IDH-mutated (OS = 13.8 vs 37.6 months, p = 0.022) and IDH-wt GBMs (OS = 13.7 vs 17.5 months, p = 0.006). TERTp-mut was associated with IDH-wt, EGFR amplification, CDKN2A deletion, and chromosome 10q loss, but not with MGMT promoter methylation. In the TERTp-wt group, OS was twice longer in EGFR-wt than in EGFR amplification GBMs (OS = 26.6 vs 13.3 months; p = 0.005). In the EGFR-wt group, patients with TERTp-wt had a significantly better outcome (OS = 26.3 vs 12.5 months, p < 0.0001), whereas in the EGFR amplification group, patients with TERTp-mut survived longer (OS = 15.8 vs 13.3 months, p = 0.05). Taken together, the absence of both EGFR amplification and TERTp-mut is associated with longer survival in patients with GBM (26.5 months for patients with IDH-wt, 36.7 months for patients with IDH mutation). CONCLUSIONS: The analysis of TERTp-mut, in combination with EGFR amplification and IDH mutation status, refines the prognostic classification of GBMs.