Immune stimulation recruits a subset of pro-regenerative macrophages to the retina that promotes axonal regrowth of injured neurons

The multifaceted nature of neuroinflammation is highlighted by its ability to both aggravate and promote neuronal health. While in mammals retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) are unable to regenerate following injury, acute inflammation can induce axonal regrowth. However, the nature of the cells, cellular states and signalling pathways that drive this inflammation-induced regeneration have remained elusive. Here, we investigated the functional significance of macrophages during RGC de- and regeneration, by characterizing the inflammatory cascade evoked by optic nerve crush (ONC) injury, with or without local inflammatory stimulation in the vitreous. By combining single-cell RNA sequencing and fate mapping approaches, we elucidated the response of retinal microglia and recruited monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) to RGC injury. Importantly, inflammatory stimulation recruited large numbers of MDMs to the retina, which exhibited long-term engraftment and promoted axonal regrowth. Ligand-receptor analysis highlighted a subset of recruited macrophages that exhibited expression of pro-regenerative secreted factors, which were able to promote axon regrowth via paracrine signalling. Our work reveals how inflammation may promote CNS regeneration by modulating innate immune responses, providing a rationale for macrophage-centred strategies for driving neuronal repair following injury and disease.

Differential plasticity and fate of brain-resident and recruited macrophages during the onset and resolution of neuroinflammation

Microglia and border-associated macrophages (BAMs) are brain-resident self-renewing cells. Here, we examined the fate of microglia, BAMs, and recruited macrophages upon neuroinflammation and through resolution. Upon infection, Trypanosoma brucei parasites invaded the brain via its border regions, triggering brain barrier disruption and monocyte infiltration. Fate mapping combined with single-cell sequencing revealed microglia accumulation around the ventricles and expansion of epiplexus cells. Depletion experiments using genetic targeting revealed that resident macrophages promoted initial parasite defense and subsequently facilitated monocyte infiltration across brain barriers. These recruited monocyte-derived macrophages outnumbered resident macrophages and exhibited more transcriptional plasticity, adopting antimicrobial gene expression profiles. Recruited macrophages were rapidly removed upon disease resolution, leaving no engrafted monocyte-derived cells in the parenchyma, while resident macrophages progressively reverted toward a homeostatic state. Long-term transcriptional alterations were limited for microglia but more pronounced in BAMs. Thus, brain-resident and recruited macrophages exhibit diverging responses and dynamics during infection and resolution.

Single-cell profiling of myeloid cells in glioblastoma across species and disease stage reveals macrophage competition and specialization

Glioblastomas are aggressive primary brain cancers that recur as therapy-resistant tumors. Myeloid cells control glioblastoma malignancy, but their dynamics during disease progression remain poorly understood. Here, we employed single-cell RNA sequencing and CITE-seq to map the glioblastoma immune landscape in mouse tumors and in patients with newly diagnosed disease or recurrence. This revealed a large and diverse myeloid compartment, with dendritic cell and macrophage populations that were conserved across species and dynamic across disease stages. Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) consisted of microglia- or monocyte-derived populations, with both exhibiting additional heterogeneity, including subsets with conserved lipid and hypoxic signatures. Microglia- and monocyte-derived TAMs were self-renewing populations that competed for space and could be depleted via CSF1R blockade. Microglia-derived TAMs were predominant in newly diagnosed tumors, but were outnumbered by monocyte-derived TAMs following recurrence, especially in hypoxic tumor environments. Our results unravel the glioblastoma myeloid landscape and provide a framework for future therapeutic interventions.

Interleukin-10 Prevents Pathological Microglia Hyperactivation following Peripheral Endotoxin Challenge

Microglia, the resident macrophages of the brain parenchyma, are key players in central nervous system (CNS) development, homeostasis, and disorders. Distinct brain pathologies seem associated with discrete microglia activation modules. How microglia regain quiescence following challenges remains less understood. Here, we explored the role of the interleukin-10 (IL-10) axis in restoring murine microglia homeostasis following a peripheral endotoxin challenge. Specifically, we show that lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-challenged mice harboring IL-10 receptor-deficient microglia displayed neuronal impairment and succumbed to fatal sickness. Addition of a microglial tumor necrosis factor (TNF) deficiency rescued these animals, suggesting a microglia-based circuit driving pathology. Single cell transcriptome analysis revealed various IL-10 producing immune cells in the CNS, including most prominently Ly49D⁺ NK cells and neutrophils, but not microglia. Collectively, we define kinetics of the microglia response to peripheral endotoxin challenge, including their activation and robust silencing, and highlight the critical role of non-microglial IL-10 in preventing deleterious microglia hyperactivation.

Identifying the variables that drive tamoxifen-independent CreERT2 recombination: Implications for microglial fate mapping and gene deletions

Ligand-dependent Cre recombinases such as the CreERT2 system allow for tamoxifen-inducible Cre recombination. Important examples are the Cx3cr1-CreERT2 and Sall1-CreERT2 lines that are widely used for fate mapping and gene deletion studies of brain macrophages. Our results now show that both CreERT2 lines can exhibit a high rate of tamoxifen-independent "leaky" excision with some reporter strains, while this is not observed with others. We suggest that this disparity is determined by the length of the floxed transcriptional STOP cassette that is incorporated in the various reporter lines. In addition, the rate of spontaneous recombination was also determined by the CreERT2 expression levels and the longevity of the CreERT2-expressing cells. The implications of these results are discussed in the context of fate mapping and inducible gene deletion studies in macrophages and microglia.