Microglia can interact with glutamatergic neurons and, through control of synaptic elements, regulate their physiological function. Much less is known about the partnership between microglia and GABAergic inhibitory interneurons. Here, we compared the interactions between microglia and parvalbumin (PV+) and somatostatin (SOM+) expressing interneurons in the CA1 hippocampal area of APP/PS1 transgenic mice that mimic certain aspects of the Alzheimer's disease (AD).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized with increased formation of amyloid-β (Aβ) in the brain. Aβ peptide toxicity is associated with disturbances of several intracellular signaling pathways such as mitogen activated protein kinases (MAPKs). The aim of this study was to investigate the role of MAPKs and their interactions in Aβ-induced neurotoxicity using isolated hippocampal neurons from the rat.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFβ-Amyloid peptide (Aβ), the major element of senile plaques in Alzheimer's disease (AD), has been found to accumulate in brain regions critical for memory and cognition. Deposits of Aβ trigger neurotoxic events which lead to neural apoptotic death. The present study examined whether agmatine, an endogenous polyamine formed by the decarboxylation of L-arginine, possesses a neuroprotective effect against Aβ-induced toxicity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDespite the consensus that neuro-inflammation and insulin resistance (IR) are two hallmarks of Alzheimer disease (AD), the molecular mechanisms responsible for the development of IR remain uncharacterized. MAPKs are signaling molecules that are implicated in the pathology of AD and have a role in IR development. Given that inflammatory mediators are shown to interfere with insulin signaling pathway in different cell types, the present work aimed to investigate whether neuro-inflammation induced memory loss is associated with hippocampal IR and whether insulin treatment protects against this IR.
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