胶质细胞系来源的神经营养因子家族配体研究现状

胶质细胞系来源的神经营养因子家族配体(GFLs)通过受体酪氨酸激酶激活靶细胞内特定的信号转导途径,从而促进多种外周和中枢发育神经元的存活、再生、损伤修复及生长和分化,并维持其正常功能,保证神经元间的正确连接。     

SHH信号通路在海马神经可塑性及相关神经系统疾病中的作用

音猬因子（sonic hedgehog,SHH）是一种分泌蛋白质,可在发育过程中控制神经祖细胞、神经元和神经胶质细胞的形成。研究发现,海马是学习和记忆中至关重要的大脑区域,SHH在海马神经元回路的形成和可塑性中发挥重要作用,可介导海马神经的发生和突触的可塑性调节。海马神经元树突中SHH受体的激活是跨神经元信号通路的组成部分,该信号通路可加速轴突的生长并增强谷氨酸从突触前末端的释放。SHH信号通路转导受损可导致中枢神经系统损伤和相关疾病（如自闭症、抑郁症和神经退行性疾病等）发生。因此,控制SHH信号通路转导,如使用SHH通路抑制剂或激动剂可能有助于相关疾病的治疗。综述了SHH信号通路的海马神经可塑性及其在中枢神经系统发育和相关疾病中的影响,以期为阐明SHH信号转导受损导致的海马神经受损和中枢神经系统相关疾病的机制奠定一定的理论依据。     

神经干细胞及其对脑缺血损伤的潜在治疗作用

新神经元在成年哺乳动物脑的特定区域出现,起源于海马齿状回和室下带的神经干细胞,神经干细胞可以分化成神经元,星形胶质细胞和少突胶质细胞,采用双标技术可以检测新神经元的发生,神经干细胞具有自我更新和多方向分化的潜能,受内在因素和外部环境的调控,证据显示成年人脑海马齿9状回的颗粒细胞产生新神经元,恒河猴的室下带产生新神经元,迁移到新皮质区分化为成熟神经元,人的神经干细胞已从胚胎前脑获得,缺血损伤可以激活齿状回的神经干细胞增殖,激活或移植神经干细胞对缺血损伤的脑组织具有潜在的治疗作用。     

胶质细胞参与神经病理痛的机制

神经病理痛是由于躯体感觉系统的损伤或疾病所引起的疼痛。胶质细胞主要包括中枢神经系统的星形胶质细胞和小胶质细胞,以及外周神经系统的施旺细胞和卫星胶质细胞。胶质细胞在神经受损后被激活,发生形态变化并上调特定蛋白表达,通过与神经元的相互作用,在神经病理痛的初始和维持阶段发挥重要作用。本文综述近年来胶质细胞参与神经病理痛的研究成果。     

神经炎症在帕金森病中的作用及研究进展

帕金森病(Parkinson disease,PD)是全球第二大神经退行性疾病,病理本质是"黑质多巴胺能神经元选择性、进行性死亡",发病机制不清。研究发现神经炎症在PD病程中发挥重要作用,表现在:PD病人和动物模型中,黑质局部小胶质细胞、星形胶质细胞激活,血脑屏障受损及外周T淋巴细胞浸润。但PD中神经炎症发生的机制尚未阐明。本文将综述神经炎症在PD中的表现及发生机制的研究进展,从神经炎症的角度为PD防治的研究提供可能的思路。     

以PTEN为靶点促进CNS再生修复的研究进展

成年哺乳动物中枢神经系统(CNS)神经元内在再生能力低下是其损伤后不能自发性再生的主要原因之一。目前,针对成年CNS神经元内在生长能力的降低提出了一个全新的理论,即某些控制发育完成后细胞过度生长的肿瘤抑制基因在成熟神经元中高表达,与CNS损伤后再生抑制有关。其中,10号染色体缺失的磷酸酯酶和张力蛋白同源物基因(PTEN)在成年CNS神经元内高表达主要与神经元内在再生能力降低有关,抑制PTEN可通过多条途径保护受损神经元并促进其再生。本文综述了以PTEN为靶点促进CNS损伤修复的研究进展。     

骨钙素的中枢调控作用及其生物学机制

骨钙素(OCN)能调节多种外周组织器官的生理结构与功能,也发挥重要的中枢调控作用,与个体的学习和记忆等高级认知功能密切相关。研究表明,OCN穿过血脑屏障进入大脑,并与神经元或神经胶质细胞膜上的G蛋白偶联受体(GPCR)家族成员GPR158和GPR37结合,激活或抑制细胞内相关信号通路,改变神经元或神经胶质细胞的生理活性。OCN在脑内的作用主要包括调节5-羟色胺、多巴胺、去甲肾上腺素和γ-氨基丁酸等神经递质合成与释放、增加脑源性神经营养因子表达、促进海马神经发生、增强海马神经元自噬及维持髓鞘稳态等。此外,OCN还能参与调控多种神经退行性疾病的病理生理学进程。在阿尔茨海默病(AD)中,OCN干预能够部分减少β-淀粉样蛋白(Aβ)沉积及Aβ诱发的细胞毒性等,改善学习和记忆能力缺陷;在帕金森氏病(PD)中,OCN干预能够部分抑制黑质和纹状体多巴胺能神经元丢失,增加酪氨酸羟化酶含量及降低神经炎症等,缓解运动功能障碍。本文通过解析GPR158和GPR37的结构与功能,分析OCN在脑内的作用及其生物学机制,探讨OCN对AD和PD等神经退行性疾病的影响,为进一步筛选促进脑健康的新型靶点提供依据。     

神经营养因子

神经营养因子(neurotrophic factor)是多肽。这些因子在发育神经系统中支持神经元生长、分化和存活;在成年神经系统中有维持神经元的作用。最近的资料还支持一种新的观点,即有些神经营养因子可能与改善脑发育中神经元之间的联系有关。在神经营养因子中,一些因子主要作用于神经元;而另一些因子既作用于神经元,也作用于非神经元。     

脑源性神经营养因子前体蛋白生物学效应研究进展

神经营养因子是一类分泌性多肽类生长因子,可促进中枢和外周神经元的生长、存活以及分化,但其前体分子却具有不同的生物学活性,也有着不同的受体以及细胞内信号通路。本文对近年来关于脑源性神经营养因子前体蛋白的研究予以综述,着重讨论其在神经损伤与情绪障碍和神经退行性变疾病模型中的作用。     

低剂量激光处理促进神经干细胞增殖

神经干细胞(neural stem cell,NSC)是脑内新生细胞的源泉,周期性地在脑内两个重要区域分裂:脑室和海马。当中枢神经系统(central nervous system,CNS)损伤后,受损神经元胞外微环境含有大量阻止神经再生的因子,导致神经干细胞增殖能力下降。低剂量激光处理(low-level laser treatment,LLLT)作为一种无损伤的新型物理疗法,能调节机体的多种生物学功能,为神经干细胞增殖提供一种潜在的治疗方法。我们研究发现低剂量弱激光处理可以促进小鼠海马区的神经干细胞增殖,并且促进神经干细胞分化为新生的神经元,这一研究可以成为神经再生的一种新手段,将为低剂量激光处理治疗阿尔兹海默症在临床上的应用奠定基础。     

Nerve injury signaling

Although neurons within the peripheral nervous system (PNS) have a remarkable ability to repair themselves after injury, neurons within the central nervous system (CNS) do not spontaneously regenerate. This problem has remained recalcitrant despite a century of research on the reaction of axons to injury. The balance between inhibitory cues present in the environment and the intrinsic growth capacity of the injured neuron determines the extent of axonal regeneration following injury. The cell body of an injured neuron must receive accurate and timely information about the site and extent of axonal damage in order to increase its intrinsic growth capacity and successfully regenerate. One of the mechanisms contributing to this process is retrograde transport of injury signals. For example, molecules activated at the injury site convey information to the cell body leading to the expression of regeneration-associated genes and increased growth capacity of the neuron. Here we discuss recent studies that have begun to dissect the injury-signaling pathways involved in stimulating the intrinsic growth capacity of injured neurons.     

Notch signaling inhibits axon regeneration

Many neurons have limited capacity to regenerate their axons after injury. Neurons in the mammalian central nervous system do not regenerate, and even neurons in the peripheral nervous system often fail to regenerate to their former targets. This failure is likely due in part to pathways that actively restrict regeneration; however, only a few factors that limit regeneration are known. Here, using single-neuron analysis of regeneration in?vivo, we show that Notch/lin-12 signaling inhibits the regeneration of mature C.?elegans neurons. Notch signaling suppresses regeneration by acting autonomously in the injured cell to prevent growth cone formation. The metalloprotease and gamma-secretase cleavage events that lead to Notch activation during development are also required for its activity in regeneration. Furthermore, blocking Notch activation immediately after injury improves regeneration. Our results define a postdevelopmental role for the Notch pathway as a repressor of axon regeneration in?vivo.     

The cellular and molecular basis of peripheral nerve regeneration

Functional recovery from peripheral nerve injury and repair depends on a multitude of factors, both intrinsic and extrinsic to neurons. Neuronal survival after axotomy is a prerequisite for regeneration and is facilitated by an array of trophic factors from multiple sources, including neurotrophins, neuropoietic cytokines, insulin-like growth factors (IGFs), and glial-cell-line-derived neurotrophic factors (GDNFs). Axotomized neurons must switch from a transmitting mode to a growth mode and express growth-associated proteins, such as GAP-43, tubulin, and actin, as well as an array of novel neuropeptides and cytokines, all of which have the potential to promote axonal regeneration. Axonal sprouts must reach the distal nerve stump at a time when its growth support is optimal. Schwann cells in the distal stump undergo proliferation and phenotypical changes to prepare the local environment to be favorable for axonal regeneration. Schwann cells play an indispensable role in promoting regeneration by increasing their synthesis of surface cell adhesion molecules (CAMs), such asN-CAM, Ng-CAM/L1, N-cadherin, and L2/HNK-1, by elaborating basement membrane that contains many extracellular matrix proteins, such as laminin, fibronectin, and tenascin, and by producing many neurotrophic factors and their receptors. However, the growth support provided by the distal nerve stump and the capacity of the axotomized neurons to regenerate axons may not be sustained indefinitely. Axonal regeneration may be facilitated by new strategies that enhance the growth potential of neurons and optimize the growth support of the distal nerve stump in combination with prompt nerve repair.     

Olfactory bulb neurogenesis and its neurological impact

Contrary to the long-held dogma according to which the adult mammalian brain does not produce neurons anymore, neuronal turnover has been reported in two discrete areas of the adult brain: the hippocampus and the olfactory bulb. Adult-generated neurons are produced from neural stem cells located in the hippocampal subgranular zone and the subventricular zone of the lateral ventricles. Recently, number of genetic and epigenetic factors that modulate proliferation of stem cells, migration, differentiation and survival of newborn neurons have been characterized. We know that neurogenesis increases in the diseased brain, after stroke or after traumatic brain injury. Importantly, progenitors from the subventricular zone, but not from the subgranular zone, are incorporated at the sites of injury, where they replace some of the degenerated neurons. Thus, the central nervous system has the capacity to regenerate itself after injury and, today, researchers develop strategies aimed at promoting neurogenesis in diseased areas. This basic research is attracting a lot of attention because of the hope that it will lead to regeneration and reconstruction therapy for the damaged brain. In this review, we discuss major findings concerning the organization of the neurogenic niche located in the subventricular zone and examine both intrinsic and extrinsic factors that regulate adult neurogenesis. Then, we present evidences for the intrinsic capability of the adult brain for cell replacement, and shed light on recent works demonstrating that one can greatly enhance appropriate brain cell replacement by using molecular cues known to endogenously control proliferation, migration, differentiation and/or survival of subventricular zone progenitors. Finally, we review some of the advantages and limits of strategies aimed at using endogenous progenitors and their relevance to human clinics.     

Neuronal STAT3 activation is essential for CNTF- and inflammatory stimulation-induced CNS axon regeneration

CNS neurons, such as retinal ganglion cells (RGCs), do not normally regenerate injured axons, but instead undergo apoptotic cell death. Regenerative failure is due to inhibitory factors in the myelin and forming glial scar as well as due to an insufficient intrinsic capability of mature neurons to regrow axons. Nevertheless, RGCs can be transformed into an active regenerative state upon inflammatory stimulation (IS) in the inner eye, for instance by lens injury, enabling these RGCs to survive axotomy and to regenerate axons into the lesioned optic nerve. The beneficial effects of IS are mediated by various factors, including CNTF, LIF and IL-6. Consistently, IS activates various signaling pathways, such as JAK/STAT3 and PI3K/AKT/mTOR, in several retinal cell types. Using a conditional knockdown approach to specifically delete STAT3 in adult RGCs, we investigated the role of STAT3 in IS-induced neuroprotection and axon regeneration. Conditional STAT3 knockdown in RGCs did not affect the survival of RGCs after optic nerve injury compared with controls, but significantly reduced the neuroprotective effects of IS. STAT3 depletion significantly compromised CNTF-stimulated neurite growth in culture and IS-induced transformation of RGCs into an active regenerative state in vivo. As a consequence, IS-mediated axonal regeneration into the injured optic nerve was almost completely abolished in mice with STAT3 depleted in RGCs. In conclusion, STAT3 activation in RGCs is involved in neuroprotection and is a necessary prerequisite for optic nerve regeneration upon IS.     

Combinatorial treatments for promoting axon regeneration in the CNS: strategies for overcoming inhibitory signals and activating neurons' intrinsic growth state

In general, neurons in the mature mammalian central nervous system (CNS) are unable to regenerate injured axons, and neurons that remain uninjured are unable to form novel connections that might compensate for ones that have been lost. As a result of this, victims of CNS injury, stroke, or certain neurodegenerative diseases are unable to fully recover sensory, motor, cognitive, or autonomic functions. Regenerative failure is related to a host of inhibitory signals associated with the extracellular environment and with the generally low intrinsic potential of mature CNS neurons to regenerate. Most research to date has focused on extrinsic factors, particularly the identification of inhibitory proteins associated with myelin, the perineuronal net, glial cells, and the scar that forms at an injury site. However, attempts to overcome these inhibitors have resulted in relatively limited amounts of CNS regeneration. Using the optic nerve as a model system, we show that with appropriate stimulation, mature neurons can revert to an active growth state and that when this occurs, the effects of overcoming inhibitory signals are enhanced dramatically. Similar conclusions are emerging from studies in other systems, pointing to a need to consider combinatorial treatments in the clinical setting.     

Extrinsic cellular and molecular mediators of peripheral axonal regeneration

The ability of injured peripheral nerves to regenerate and reinnervate their original targets is a characteristic feature of the peripheral nervous system (PNS). On the other hand, neurons of the central nervous system (CNS), including retinal ganglion cell (RGC) axons, are incapable of spontaneous regeneration. In the adult PNS, axonal regeneration after injury depends on well-orchestrated cellular and molecular processes that comprise a highly reproducible series of degenerative reactions distal to the site of injury. During this fine-tuned process, named Wallerian degeneration, a remodeling of the distal nerve fragment prepares a permissive microenvironment that permits successful axonal regrowth originating from the proximal nerve fragment. Therefore, a multitude of adjusted intrinsic and extrinsic factors are important for surviving neurons, Schwann cells, macrophages and fibroblasts as well as endothelial cells in order to achieve successful regeneration. The aim of this review is to summarize relevant extrinsic cellular and molecular determinants of successful axonal regeneration in rodents that contribute to the regenerative microenvironment of the PNS.     

Role of Non-coding RNAs in Axon Regeneration after Peripheral Nerve Injury

Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) may lead to disability and neuropathic pain, which constitutes a substantial economic burden to patients and society. It was found that the peripheral nervous system (PNS) has the ability to regenerate after injury due to a permissive microenvironment mainly provided by Schwann cells (SCs) and the intrinsic growth capacity of neurons; however, the results of injury repair are not always satisfactory. Effective, long-distance axon regeneration after PNI is achieved by precise regulation of gene expression. Numerous studies have shown that in the process of peripheral nerve damage and repair, differential expression of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) significantly affects axon regeneration, especially expression of microRNAs (miRNAs), long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and circular RNAs (circRNAs). In the present article, we review the cellular and molecular mechanisms of axon regeneration after PNI, and analyze the roles of these ncRNAs in nerve repair. In addition, we discuss the characteristics and functions of these ncRNAs. Finally, we provide a thorough perspective on the functional mechanisms of ncRNAs in nervous injury repair, and explore the potential these ncRNAs offer as targets of nerve injury treatment.