An Astrocyte Regenerative Response from Vimentin-Containing Cells in the Spinal Cord of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis's Disease-Like Transgenic (G93A SOD1) Mice
- 15 January 2015
- journal article
- research article
- Published by S. Karger AG in Neurodegenerative Diseases
- Vol. 15 (1), 1-12
- https://doi.org/10.1159/000369466
Abstract
The reason for regeneration in the adult spinal cord during motor neuron degeneration in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) remains largely unknown. To this end, we studied the alteration of vimentin (a neural precursor cells marker in CNS)-containing cells (VCCs) in spinal cord during different stages of ALS used C57BL/6J G93A SOD1 transgenic mice mimicking ALS. Results showed that VCCs were mostly distributed in the ependymal zone (EZ) surrounding the central canal of spinal cord in SOD1 wild type mice; a few of VCCs were sparsely distributed in other regions. However, the number of VCCs significantly increased in the spinal cord during the onset and progression stages of ALS. They were extensively distributed in the EZ, the anterior, the lateral and the posterior horn of grey matter, particularly in the posterior horn region at the progression stage. A majority of VCCs in the anterior, the lateral and the posterior horn of grey matter (outside of EZ) generated astrocytes, but no neurons, oligodendrocytes and microgliocytes. Our results suggested that there was a potential astrocyte regenerative response to motor neuron degeneration in motor neurons-degenerated regions in the adult spinal cord during the onset and progression stages of ALS-like disease. The regenerative responses in the adult spinal cord of ALS-like mice may be a potential pathway in attempting to repair the degenerated motor neurons and restore the dysfunctional neural circuitry.Keywords
This publication has 50 references indexed in Scilit:
- Umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells consist of a unique population of progenitors co-expressing mesenchymal stem cell and neuronal markers capable of instantaneous neuronal differentiationStem Cell Research & Therapy, 2012
- Clusterin secreted by astrocytes enhances neuronal differentiation from human neural precursor cellsCell Death & Differentiation, 2011
- VimentinSmall GTPases, 2011
- Characterization of a Novel SOD-1(G93A) Transgenic Mouse Line with Very Decelerated Disease DevelopmentPLOS ONE, 2010
- Vimentin induces changes in cell shape, motility, and adhesion during the epithelial to mesenchymal transitionThe FASEB Journal, 2010
- Stem cells in human neurodegenerative disorders — time for clinical translation?JCI Insight, 2010
- Amyotrophic lateral sclerosisOrphanet Journal of Rare Diseases, 2009
- The mesenchymal cell, its role in the embryo, and the remarkable signaling mechanisms that create itDevelopmental Dynamics, 2005
- Nestin expression ? a property of multi-lineage progenitor cells?Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences, 2004
- Mutations in Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase gene are associated with familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosisNature, 1993