Behold single proteins on the move: Super-resolution microscopy of living cells suggests the infamous protease does not form complexes with other secretases in the plasma membrane—in mouse fibroblasts, that is.
The tracer distinguished people with progressive supranuclear palsy from controls with a sensitivity of 85 percent, suggesting potential as a diagnostic for 4R tauopathies.
The findings hint at a liver-brain axis that transmits inflammation from periphery to brain, and could suggest therapeutic targets for preserving brain function.
Released from hippocampal neurons in response to experience, the cytokine prompted microglia to eat extracellular matrix around synapses. This facilitated growth of new spines, and sharpened memory.
As mice age, a busy receptor-mediated protein transport across the barrier wanes; inhibiting an alkaline phosphatase restores it. Meanwhile, the aging barrier becomes generally leaky to large molecules.
Researchers used PET scans from 4,000 people to link RBFOX1 risk variants to amyloidosis. People with lower RBFOX1 expression in their brains had more amyloid and worse cognition.
Live imaging of mouse brain reveals that microglia quickly engulf cell bodies while astrocytes dispose of the neuron’s more distal reaches. The cleanup crew tires with age.
Alector’s AL002c antibody mobilizes microglia, reduces neuronal dystrophy, and restores normal behavior—all in mice. The clinical version is in Phase 1.
A mouse study claims that the small GTPase restrains pro-inflammatory responses in microglia. Aβ oligomers inhibit RhoA, promoting Aβ deposition and neurodegeneration.
By suppressing a single gene, scientists triggered the transformation of astrocytes into neurons in the mouse substantia nigra, where the converts released dopamine and connected with the striatum.