{"title":"Microglia regulate synaptic development and plasticity","authors":"Megumi Andoh, Ryuta Koyama","doi":"10.1002/dneu.22814","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>Synapses are fundamental structures of neural circuits that transmit information between neurons. Thus, the process of neural circuit formation via proper synaptic connections shapes the basis of brain functions and animal behavior. Synapses continuously undergo repeated formation and elimination throughout the lifetime of an organism, reflecting the dynamics of neural circuit function. The structural transformation of synapses has been described mainly in relation to neural activity-dependent strengthening and weakening of synaptic functions, that is, functional plasticity of synapses. An increasing number of studies have unveiled the roles of microglia, brain-resident immune cells that survey the brain parenchyma with highly motile processes, in synapse formation and elimination as well as in regulating synaptic function. Over the past 15 years, the molecular mechanisms underlying microglia-dependent regulation of synaptic plasticity have been thoroughly studied, and researchers have reported that the disruption of microglia-dependent regulation causes synaptic dysfunction that leads to brain diseases. In this review, we will broadly introduce studies that report the roles of microglia in synaptic plasticity and the possible underlying molecular mechanisms.</p>","PeriodicalId":11300,"journal":{"name":"Developmental Neurobiology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.7000,"publicationDate":"2021-02-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1002/dneu.22814","citationCount":"57","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Developmental Neurobiology","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/dneu.22814","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 57
Abstract
Synapses are fundamental structures of neural circuits that transmit information between neurons. Thus, the process of neural circuit formation via proper synaptic connections shapes the basis of brain functions and animal behavior. Synapses continuously undergo repeated formation and elimination throughout the lifetime of an organism, reflecting the dynamics of neural circuit function. The structural transformation of synapses has been described mainly in relation to neural activity-dependent strengthening and weakening of synaptic functions, that is, functional plasticity of synapses. An increasing number of studies have unveiled the roles of microglia, brain-resident immune cells that survey the brain parenchyma with highly motile processes, in synapse formation and elimination as well as in regulating synaptic function. Over the past 15 years, the molecular mechanisms underlying microglia-dependent regulation of synaptic plasticity have been thoroughly studied, and researchers have reported that the disruption of microglia-dependent regulation causes synaptic dysfunction that leads to brain diseases. In this review, we will broadly introduce studies that report the roles of microglia in synaptic plasticity and the possible underlying molecular mechanisms.
期刊介绍:
Developmental Neurobiology (previously the Journal of Neurobiology ) publishes original research articles on development, regeneration, repair and plasticity of the nervous system and on the ontogeny of behavior. High quality contributions in these areas are solicited, with an emphasis on experimental as opposed to purely descriptive work. The Journal also will consider manuscripts reporting novel approaches and techniques for the study of the development of the nervous system as well as occasional special issues on topics of significant current interest. We welcome suggestions on possible topics from our readers.