Slow motor neurons resist pathological TDP-43 and mediate motor recovery in the rNLS8 model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

In the intermediate stages of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), surviving motor neurons (MNs) that show intrinsic resistance to TDP-43 proteinopathy can partially compensate for the loss of their more disease-susceptible counterparts. Elucidating the mechanisms of this compensation may reveal approaches for attenuating motor impairment in ALS patients. In the rNLS8 mouse model of ALS-like pathology driven by doxycycline-regulated neuronal expression of human TDP-43 lacking a nuclear localization signal (hTDP-43ΔNLS), slow MNs are more resistant to disease than fast-fatigable (FF) MNs and can mediate recovery following transgene suppression.

Microglial transcriptome analysis in the rNLS8 mouse model of TDP-43 proteinopathy reveals discrete expression profiles associated with neurodegenerative progression and recovery.

The microglial reaction is a hallmark of neurodegenerative conditions, and elements thereof may exert differential effects on disease progression, either worsening or ameliorating severity. In amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a syndrome characterized by cytoplasmic aggregation of TDP-43 protein and atrophy of motor neurons in the cortex and spinal cord, the transcriptomic signatures of microglia during disease progression are incompletely understood. Here, we performed longitudinal RNAseq analysis of cortical and spinal cord microglia from rNLS8 mice, in which doxycycline-regulatable expression of human TDP-43 (hTDP-43) in the cytoplasm of neurons recapitulates many features of ALS.

An imaging mass spectrometry atlas of lipids in the human neurologically normal and Huntington's disease caudate nucleus.

Huntington's disease (HD) is a fatal disorder associated with germline trinucleotide repeat expansions in the HTT gene and characterised by striatal neurodegeneration. No efficacious interventions are available for HD, highlighting a major unmet medical need. The molecular mechanisms underlying HD are incompletely understood despite its monogenic aetiology.

Subventricular zone lipidomic architecture loss in Huntington's disease.

The human subventricular zone (SVZ) has a defined cytological and neurochemical architecture, with four constituent laminae that act in concert to support its neurogenic activity. Lipidomic specialisation has previously been demonstrated in the neurologically normal human SVZ, with enrichment of functionally important lipid classes in each lamina. The SVZ is also responsive to neurodegenerative disorders, where thickening of the niche and enhanced proliferation of resident cells were observed in Huntington's disease (HD) brains.

Layer-specific lipid signatures in the human subventricular zone demonstrated by imaging mass spectrometry.

The subventricular zone is a key site of adult neurogenesis and is also implicated in neurodegenerative diseases and brain cancers. In the subventricular zone, cell proliferation, migration and differentiation of nascent stem cells and neuroblasts are regulated at least in part by lipids. The human subventricular zone is distinctly layered and each layer contains discrete cell types that support the processes of neuroblast migration and neurogenesis.