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Gao Z, Santos RB, Rupert J, Van Drunen R, Yu Y, Eckel-Mahan K, Kolonin MG. Endothelial-specific telomerase inactivation causes telomere-independent cell senescence and multi-organ dysfunction characteristic of aging. Aging Cell 2024:e14138. [PMID: 38475941 DOI: 10.1111/acel.14138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2023] [Revised: 01/31/2024] [Accepted: 02/20/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024] Open
Abstract
It has remained unclear how aging of endothelial cells (EC) contributes to pathophysiology of individual organs. Cell senescence results in part from inactivation of telomerase (TERT). Here, we analyzed mice with Tert knockout specifically in EC. Tert loss in EC induced transcriptional changes indicative of senescence and tissue hypoxia in EC and in other cells. We demonstrate that EC-Tert-KO mice have leaky blood vessels. The blood-brain barrier of EC-Tert-KO mice is compromised, and their cognitive function is impaired. EC-Tert-KO mice display reduced muscle endurance and decreased expression of enzymes responsible for oxidative metabolism. Our data indicate that Tert-KO EC have reduced mitochondrial content and function, which results in increased dependence on glycolysis. Consistent with this, EC-Tert-KO mice have metabolism changes indicative of increased glucose utilization. In EC-Tert-KO mice, expedited telomere attrition is observed for EC of adipose tissue (AT), while brain and skeletal muscle EC have normal telomere length but still display features of senescence. Our data indicate that the loss of Tert causes EC senescence in part through a telomere length-independent mechanism undermining mitochondrial function. We conclude that EC-Tert-KO mice is a model of expedited vascular senescence recapitulating the hallmarks aging, which can be useful for developing revitalization therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhanguo Gao
- The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Rafael Bravo Santos
- The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Joseph Rupert
- The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Rachel Van Drunen
- The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Yongmei Yu
- The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Kristin Eckel-Mahan
- The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Mikhail G Kolonin
- The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas, USA
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2
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Harrison MAA, Morris SL, Rudman GA, Rittenhouse DJ, Monk CH, Sakamuri SSVP, Mehedi Hasan M, Shamima Khatun M, Wang H, Garfinkel LP, Norton EB, Kim S, Kolls JK, Michal Jazwinski S, Mostany R, Katakam PVG, Engler-Chiurazzi EB, Zwezdaryk KJ. Intermittent cytomegalovirus infection alters neurobiological metabolism and induces cognitive deficits in mice. Brain Behav Immun 2024; 117:36-50. [PMID: 38182037 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2023.12.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 12/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Risk factors contributing to dementia are multifactorial. Accumulating evidence suggests a role for pathogens as risk factors, but data is largely correlative with few causal relationships. Here, we demonstrate that intermittent murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) infection of mice, alters blood brain barrier (BBB) permeability and metabolic pathways. Increased basal mitochondrial function is observed in brain microvessels cells (BMV) exposed to intermittent MCMV infection and is accompanied by elevated levels of superoxide. Further, mice score lower in cognitive assays compared to age-matched controls who were never administered MCMV. Our data show that repeated systemic infection with MCMV, increases markers of neuroinflammation, alters mitochondrial function, increases markers of oxidative stress and impacts cognition. Together, this suggests that viral burden may be a risk factor for dementia. These observations provide possible mechanistic insights through which pathogens may contribute to the progression or exacerbation of dementia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark A A Harrison
- Neuroscience Program, Tulane Brain Institute, Tulane University School of Science & Engineering, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Sara L Morris
- Biomedical Sciences Program, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Grace A Rudman
- Department of Environmental Studies, Tulane University School of Liberal Arts, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Daniel J Rittenhouse
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Tulane Center for Translational Research in Infection & Inflammation, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Chandler H Monk
- Bioinnovation Program, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Siva S V P Sakamuri
- Department of Pharmacology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Md Mehedi Hasan
- Tulane Center for Aging, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Mst Shamima Khatun
- Tulane Center for Translational Research in Infection & Inflammation, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Hanyun Wang
- Department of Neurosurgery, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Lucas P Garfinkel
- Department of Neurosurgery, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Elizabeth B Norton
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Sangku Kim
- Tulane Center for Aging, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Jay K Kolls
- Deming Department of Medicine, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Tulane Center for Translational Research in Infection & Inflammation, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - S Michal Jazwinski
- Tulane Center for Aging, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Tulane Brain Institute, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Deming Department of Medicine, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Ricardo Mostany
- Department of Pharmacology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Tulane Center for Aging, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Prasad V G Katakam
- Department of Pharmacology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Tulane Center for Aging, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Tulane Brain Institute, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Elizabeth B Engler-Chiurazzi
- Tulane Center for Aging, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Tulane Brain Institute, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Department of Neurosurgery, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA.
| | - Kevin J Zwezdaryk
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Tulane Center for Aging, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA; Tulane Brain Institute, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA.
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3
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Sian-Hulsmann J, Riederer P. Virus-induced brain pathology and the neuroinflammation-inflammation continuum: the neurochemists view. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2024:10.1007/s00702-023-02723-5. [PMID: 38261034 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-023-02723-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
Fascinatingly, an abundance of recent studies has subscribed to the importance of cytotoxic immune mechanisms that appear to increase the risk/trigger for many progressive neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinson's disease (PD), Alzheimer's disease (AD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and multiple sclerosis. Events associated with the neuroinflammatory cascades, such as ageing, immunologic dysfunction, and eventually disruption of the blood-brain barrier and the "cytokine storm", appear to be orchestrated mainly through the activation of microglial cells and communication with the neurons. The inflammatory processes prompt cellular protein dyshomeostasis. Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease share a common feature marked by characteristic pathological hallmarks of abnormal neuronal protein accumulation. These Lewy bodies contain misfolded α-synuclein aggregates in PD or in the case of AD, they are Aβ deposits and tau-containing neurofibrillary tangles. Subsequently, these abnormal protein aggregates further elicit neurotoxic processes and events which contribute to the onset of neurodegeneration and to its progression including aggravation of neuroinflammation. However, there is a caveat for exclusively linking neuroinflammation with neurodegeneration, since it's highly unlikely that immune dysregulation is the only factor that contributes to the manifestation of many of these neurodegenerative disorders. It is unquestionably a complex interaction with other factors such as genetics, age, and environment. This endorses the "multiple hit hypothesis". Consequently, if the host has a genetic susceptibility coupled to an age-related weakened immune system, this makes them more susceptible to the virus/bacteria-related infection. This may trigger the onset of chronic cytotoxic neuroinflammatory processes leading to protein dyshomeostasis and accumulation, and finally, these events lead to neuronal destruction. Here, we differentiate "neuroinflammation" and "inflammation" with regard to the involvement of the blood-brain barrier, which seems to be intact in the case of neuroinflammation but defect in the case of inflammation. There is a neuroinflammation-inflammation continuum with regard to virus-induced brain affection. Therefore, we propose a staging of this process, which might be further developed by adding blood- and CSF parameters, their stage-dependent composition and stage-dependent severeness grade. If so, this might be suitable to optimise therapeutic strategies to fight brain neuroinflammation in its beginning and avoid inflammation at all.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeswinder Sian-Hulsmann
- Department of Human Anatomy and Medical Physiology, University of Nairobi, P.O. Box 30197, Nairobi, 00100, Kenya
| | - Peter Riederer
- University Hospital Wuerzburg, Clinic and Policlinic for Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy Margarete-Höppel-Platz 1, 97080, Würzburg, Germany.
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Southern Denmark, Winslows Vey 18, 5000, Odense, J.B, Denmark.
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Sriramula S, Theobald D, Parekh RU, Akula SM, O’Rourke DP, Eells JB. Emerging Role of Kinin B1 Receptor in Persistent Neuroinflammation and Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in Mice Following Recovery from SARS-CoV-2 Infection. Cells 2023; 12:2107. [PMID: 37626917 PMCID: PMC10453171 DOI: 10.3390/cells12162107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Evidence suggests that patients with long COVID can experience neuropsychiatric, neurologic, and cognitive symptoms. However, these clinical data are mostly associational studies complicated by confounding variables, thus the mechanisms responsible for persistent symptoms are unknown. Here we establish an animal model of long-lasting effects on the brain by eliciting mild disease in K18-hACE2 mice. Male and female K18-hACE2 mice were infected with 4 × 103 TCID50 of SARS-CoV-2 and, following recovery from acute infection, were tested in the open field, zero maze, and Y maze, starting 30 days post infection. Following recovery from SARS-CoV-2 infection, K18-hACE2 mice showed the characteristic lung fibrosis associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection, which correlates with increased expression of the pro-inflammatory kinin B1 receptor (B1R). These mice also had elevated expression of B1R and inflammatory markers in the brain and exhibited behavioral alterations such as elevated anxiety and attenuated exploratory behavior. Our data demonstrate that K18-hACE2 mice exhibit persistent effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection on brain tissue, revealing the potential for using this model of high sensitivity to SARS-CoV-2 to investigate mechanisms contributing to long COVID symptoms in at-risk populations. These results further suggest that elevated B1R expression may drive the long-lasting inflammatory response associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Srinivas Sriramula
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27834, USA; (D.T.); (R.U.P.)
| | - Drew Theobald
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27834, USA; (D.T.); (R.U.P.)
| | - Rohan Umesh Parekh
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27834, USA; (D.T.); (R.U.P.)
| | - Shaw M. Akula
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27834, USA;
| | - Dorcas P. O’Rourke
- Department of Comparative Medicine, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27834, USA;
| | - Jeffrey B. Eells
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27834, USA
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Echeverria V, Mendoza C, Iarkov A. Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors and learning and memory deficits in Neuroinflammatory diseases. Front Neurosci 2023; 17:1179611. [PMID: 37255751 PMCID: PMC10225599 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1179611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2023] [Accepted: 04/07/2023] [Indexed: 06/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Animal survival depends on cognitive abilities such as learning and memory to adapt to environmental changes. Memory functions require an enhanced activity and connectivity of a particular arrangement of engram neurons, supported by the concerted action of neurons, glia, and vascular cells. The deterioration of the cholinergic system is a common occurrence in neurological conditions exacerbated by aging such as traumatic brain injury (TBI), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Alzheimer's disease (AD), and Parkinson's disease (PD). Cotinine is a cholinergic modulator with neuroprotective, antidepressant, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and memory-enhancing effects. Current evidence suggests Cotinine's beneficial effects on cognition results from the positive modulation of the α7-nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) and the inhibition of the toll-like receptors (TLRs). The α7nAChR affects brain functions by modulating the function of neurons, glia, endothelial, immune, and dendritic cells and regulates inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmission throughout the GABA interneurons. In addition, Cotinine acting on the α7 nAChRs and TLR reduces neuroinflammation by inhibiting the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines by the immune cells. Also, α7nAChRs stimulate signaling pathways supporting structural, biochemical, electrochemical, and cellular changes in the Central nervous system during the cognitive processes, including Neurogenesis. Here, the mechanisms of memory formation as well as potential mechanisms of action of Cotinine on memory preservation in aging and neurological diseases are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Echeverria
- Facultad de Medicina y Ciencia, Universidad San Sebastián, Concepción, Chile
- Research and Development Department, Bay Pines VAHCS, Bay Pines, FL, United States
| | - Cristhian Mendoza
- Facultad de Odontologia y Ciencias de la Rehabilitacion, Universidad San Sebastián, Concepción, Chile
| | - Alex Iarkov
- Facultad de Medicina y Ciencia, Universidad San Sebastián, Concepción, Chile
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