[Activated microglial cells trigger neurogenesis following neuronal loss in the dentate gyrus of adult mice]

Abstract

Neurological injuries are widely known to promote neurogenesis in the adult hippocampal dentate gyrus. Our previous studies demonstrated that the granule cells in the hippocampal dentate gyrus are injured and eradicated by treatment with trimethyltin (TMT), with being regenerated in the dentate granule cell layer (GCL) after neuronal loss. Recent collective reports indicate that during brain injury and in neurodegenerative disorders, neurogenesis is controlled by cytokines, chemokines, neurotransmitters, and reactive oxygen/nitrogen species, which are released by dying neurons as well as by activated macrophages, micro-glia, and astrocytes. To elucidate the role of activated microglia in the neuroregeneration following the dentate granule cell loss, in this study, we evaluated the involvement of activated microglial cells and a related factor in the generation of newly-generated cells of the hippocampal dentate gyrus following neuronal loss induced by TMT. Our results support the possibility that pro-inflammatory cytokines released from activated microglial cells may be involved in promotion of the neurogenesis mechanism through activation of the NF-kappaB signaling pathway following the dentate neuronal loss induced by TMT treatment.