Galectin-3, a rising star in modulating microglia activation under conditions of neurodegeneration.

The advent of high-throughput single-cell transcriptomic analysis of microglia has revealed different phenotypes that are inherently associated with disease conditions. A common feature of some of these activated phenotypes is the upregulation of galectin-3. Representative examples of these phenotypes include disease-associated microglia (DAM) and white-associated microglia (WAM), whose role(s) in neuroprotection/neurotoxicity is a matter of high interest in the microglia community. In this review, we summarise the main findings that demonstrate the ability of galectin-3 to interact with key pattern recognition receptors, including, among others, TLR4 and TREM2 and the importance of galectin-3 in the regulation of microglia activation. Finally, we discuss increasing evidence supporting the involvement of this lectin in the main neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injury, and stroke.

Cell Death Related Proteins Beyond Apoptosis in the CNS.

Cell death related (CDR) proteins are a diverse group of proteins whose original function was ascribed to apoptotic cell death signaling. Recently, descriptions of non-apoptotic functions for CDR proteins have increased. In this minireview, we comment on recent studies of CDR proteins outside the field of apoptosis in the CNS, encompassing areas such as the inflammasome and non-apoptotic cell death, cytoskeleton reorganization, synaptic plasticity, mitophagy, neurodegeneration and calcium signaling among others. Furthermore, we discuss the evolution of proteomic techniques used to predict caspase substrates that could potentially explain their non-apoptotic roles. Finally, we address new concepts in the field of non-apoptotic functions of CDR proteins that require further research such the effect of sexual dimorphism on non-apoptotic CDR protein function and the emergence of zymogen-specific caspase functions.

Brainiac Caspases: Beyond the Wall of Apoptosis.

For the last two decades, caspases, a family of cysteine-aspartic proteases, have evolved from being considered solely as regulators of apoptosis or inflammation to having a wider range of functions. In this mini review, we focus on the most recent "non-apoptotic" roles of caspases in the CNS, particularly in neurons, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. Non-apoptotic caspase functions in microglia have already been reviewed extensively elsewhere. Here we discuss the involvement of caspases in the activation of the inflammasome, autophagy, and non-apoptotic forms of cell death such as necroptosis and pyroptosis. Also, we review the involvement of caspases in synapses and the processing of aggregates key to neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and Huntington's diseases. Likewise, we mention the recently described involvement of caspases in mitochondrial biogenesis, which is a function independent of the enzymatic activity. We conclude discussing the relevance that "new" functions of caspases have in the CNS and the future of this field of research.

TET2 Regulates the Neuroinflammatory Response in Microglia.

Epigenomic mechanisms regulate distinct aspects of the inflammatory response in immune cells. Despite the central role for microglia in neuroinflammation and neurodegeneration, little is known about their epigenomic regulation of the inflammatory response. Here, we show that Ten-eleven translocation 2 (TET2) methylcytosine dioxygenase expression is increased in microglia upon stimulation with various inflammogens through a NF-κB-dependent pathway. We found that TET2 regulates early gene transcriptional changes, leading to early metabolic alterations, as well as a later inflammatory response independently of its enzymatic activity. We further show that TET2 regulates the proinflammatory response in microglia of mice intraperitoneally injected with LPS. We observed that microglia associated with amyloid ß plaques expressed TET2 in brain tissue from individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and in 5xFAD mice. Collectively, our findings show that TET2 plays an important role in the microglial inflammatory response and suggest TET2 as a potential target to combat neurodegenerative brain disorders.

Caspases orchestrate microglia instrumental functions.

Microglia, the resident immune cells of the brain, can acquire various cell phenotypes based on their location and current role. This level of plasticity is required to fulfil the vast variety of functions that microglia perform. Adequate microglial functions are crucial for a healthy brain. However, microglial activation can also contribute to both degenerative/traumatic and proliferative diseases. We review current evidence supporting roles for caspases, a family of proteases, in the overall control of microglia, from the regulation of their activation, their biological functions, to their death. Further, we discuss possible roles for these microglial caspase-dependent signaling pathways in brain diseases.

Effective Knockdown of Gene Expression in Primary Microglia With siRNA and Magnetic Nanoparticles Without Cell Death or Inflammation.

Microglia, the resident immune cells of the brain, have multiple functions in physiological and pathological conditions, including Alzheimer's disease (AD). The use of primary microglial cell cultures has proved to be a valuable tool to study microglial biology under various conditions. However, more advanced transfection methodologies for primary cultured microglia are still needed, as current methodologies provide low transfection efficiency and induce cell death and/or inflammatory activation of the microglia. Here, we describe an easy, and effective method based on the Glial-Mag method (OZ Biosciences) using magnetic nanoparticles and a magnet to successfully transfect primary microglia cells with different small interfering RNAs (siRNAs). This method does not require specialist facilities or specific training and does not induce cell toxicity or inflammatory activation. We demonstrate that this protocol successfully decreases the expression of two key genes associated with AD, the triggering receptor expressed in myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) and CD33, in primary microglia cell cultures.

Publisher Correction: Experimental orthotopic transplantation of a tissue-engineered oesophagus in rats.

This corrects the article DOI: 10.1038/ncomms4562.

Galectin-3 released in response to traumatic brain injury acts as an alarmin orchestrating brain immune response and promoting neurodegeneration.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is currently a major cause of morbidity and poor quality of life in Western society, with an estimate of 2.5 million people affected per year in Europe, indicating the need for advances in TBI treatment. Within the first 24 h after TBI, several inflammatory response factors become upregulated, including the lectin galectin-3. In this study, using a controlled cortical impact (CCI) model of head injury, we show a large increase in the expression of galectin-3 in microglia and also an increase in the released form of galectin-3 in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) 24 h after head injury. We report that galectin-3 can bind to TLR-4, and that administration of a neutralizing antibody against galectin-3 decreases the expression of IL-1ß, IL-6, TNFα and NOS2 and promotes neuroprotection in the cortical and hippocampal cell populations after head injury. Long-term analysis demonstrated a significant neuroprotection in the cortical region in the galectin-3 knockout animals in response to TBI. These results suggest that following head trauma, released galectin-3 may act as an alarmin, binding, among other proteins, to TLR-4 and promoting inflammation and neuronal loss. Taking all together, galectin-3 emerges as a clinically relevant target for TBI therapy.

Deletion of caspase-8 in mouse myeloid cells blocks microglia pro-inflammatory activation and confers protection in MPTP neurodegeneration model.

Increasing evidence involves sustained pro-inflammatory microglia activation in the pathogenesis of different neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Parkinson's disease (PD). We recently uncovered a completely novel and unexpected role for caspase-8 and its downstream substrates caspase-3/7 in the control of microglia activation and associated neurotoxicity to dopaminergic cells. To demonstrate the genetic evidence, mice bearing a floxed allele ofCASP8 were crossed onto a transgenic line expressing Cre under the control of Lysozyme 2 gene. Analysis of caspase-8 gene deletion in brain microglia demonstrated a high efficiency in activated but not in resident microglia. Mice were challenged with lipopolysaccharide, a potent inducer of microglia activation, or with MPTP, which promotes specific dopaminergic cell damage and consequent reactive microgliosis. In neither of these models, CASP8 deletion appeared to affect the overall number of microglia expressing the pan specific microglia marker, Iba1. In contrast, CD16/CD32 expression, a microglial pro-inflammatory marker, was found to be negatively affected upon CASP8 deletion. Expression of additional proinflammatory markers were also found to be reduced in response to lipopolysaccharide. Of importance, reduced pro-inflammatory microglia activation was accompanied by a significant protection of the nigro-striatal dopaminergic system in the MPTP mouse model of PD.

Microglia-Secreted Galectin-3 Acts as a Toll-like Receptor 4 Ligand and Contributes to Microglial Activation.

Inflammatory response induced by microglia plays a critical role in the demise of neuronal populations in neuroinflammatory diseases. Although the role of toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in microglia's inflammatory response is fully acknowledged, little is known about endogenous ligands that trigger TLR4 activation. Here, we report that galectin-3 (Gal3) released by microglia acts as an endogenous paracrine TLR4 ligand. Gal3-TLR4 interaction was further confirmed in a murine neuroinflammatory model (intranigral lipopolysaccharide [LPS] injection) and in human stroke subjects. Depletion of Gal3 exerted neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects following global brain ischemia and in the neuroinflammatory LPS model. These results suggest that Gal3-dependent-TLR4 activation could contribute to sustained microglia activation, prolonging the inflammatory response in the brain.

The role of Galectin-3 in α-synuclein-induced microglial activation.

BACKGROUND: Parkinson's disease (PD) is the most prevalent neurodegenerative motor disorder. The neuropathology is characterized by intraneuronal protein aggregates of α-synuclein and progressive degeneration of dopaminergic neurons within the substantia nigra. Previous studies have shown that extracellular α-synuclein aggregates can activate microglial cells, induce inflammation and contribute to the neurodegenerative process in PD. However, the signaling pathways involved in α-synuclein-mediated microglia activation are poorly understood. Galectin-3 is a member of a carbohydrate-binding protein family involved in cell activation and inflammation. Therefore, we investigated whether galectin-3 is involved in the microglia activation triggered by α-synuclein. RESULTS: We cultured microglial (BV2) cells and induced cell activation by addition of exogenous α-synuclein monomers or aggregates to the cell culture medium. This treatment induced a significant increase in the levels of proinflammatory mediators including the inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase (iNOS), interleukin 1 Beta (IL-1ß) and Interleukin-12 (IL-12). We then reduced the levels of galectin-3 expression using siRNA or pharmacologically targeting galectin-3 activity using bis-(3-deoxy-3-(3-fluorophenyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-1-yl)-ß-D-galactopyranosyl)-sulfane. Both approaches led to a significant reduction in the observed inflammatory response induced by α-synuclein. We confirmed these findings using primary microglial cells obtained from wild-type and galectin-3 null mutant mice. Finally, we performed injections of α-synuclein in the olfactory bulb of wild type mice and observed that some of the α-synuclein was taken up by activated microglia that were immunopositive for galectin-3. CONCLUSIONS: We show that α-synuclein aggregates induce microglial activation and demonstrate for the first time that galectin-3 plays a significant role in microglia activation induced by α-synuclein. These results suggest that genetic down-regulation or pharmacological inhibition of galectin-3 might constitute a novel therapeutic target in PD and other synucleinopathies.

Experimental orthotopic transplantation of a tissue-engineered oesophagus in rats.

A tissue-engineered oesophageal scaffold could be very useful for the treatment of pediatric and adult patients with benign or malignant diseases such as carcinomas, trauma or congenital malformations. Here we decellularize rat oesophagi inside a perfusion bioreactor to create biocompatible biological rat scaffolds that mimic native architecture, resist mechanical stress and induce angiogenesis. Seeded allogeneic mesenchymal stromal cells spontaneously differentiate (proven by gene-, protein and functional evaluations) into epithelial- and muscle-like cells. The reseeded scaffolds are used to orthotopically replace the entire cervical oesophagus in immunocompetent rats. All animals survive the 14-day study period, with patent and functional grafts, and gain significantly more weight than sham-operated animals. Explanted grafts show regeneration of all the major cell and tissue components of the oesophagus including functional epithelium, muscle fibres, nerves and vasculature. We consider the presented tissue-engineered oesophageal scaffolds a significant step towards the clinical application of bioengineered oesophagi.

Enhanced induction of apoptosis in a radio-resistant bladder tumor cell line by combined treatments with X-rays and wortmannin.

The radiosensitizing effect of wortmannin (WM) treatment during and after irradiation was studied in radioresistant bladder tumor cell lines with normal (MGH-U1 cells) or defective p53 activity (RT112 cells). WM modulated G(2)/M cell cycle arrest induced by higher X-ray doses (10 Gy) in both cell lines, although the alteration was significant only in RT112 cells. The observation suggests that WM activity is independent of p53. Constitutive expression of DNA-PKcs was found to be higher in RT112 cells than in MGH-U1. Treatment with WM enhanced radiation-induced apoptosis significantly in RT112 cells while it had no effect on MGH-U1 cells. Although a variety of PI3-kinases and PI3-K like kinases (including ATM) could be inhibited by WM, our observation of increased early lethality by WM treatment in RT112 is in agreement with previous results. They suggest that the WM-dependent radiosensitization of RT112 is a direct consequence of the inhibition of DNA-PK, resulting in the inhibition of DSB repair in the fast component. This early effect in the p53 deficient cell line could also indicate that processes other than apoptosis may contribute to the increased radiosensitization. In our opinion, the expression level of DNA-PKcs in human tumor cells may be a good predictor for the success of DNA-PKcs inhibitors when used as radiosensitizers.