The adult spinal cord harbors a population of GFAP-positive progenitors with limited self-renewal potential

Adult neural stem cells (aNSCs) of the forebrain are GFAP-expressing cells that are intercalated within ependymal cells of the subventricular zone (SVZ). Cells showing NSCs characteristics in vitro can also be isolated from the periaqueductal region in the adult spinal cord (SC), but contradicting results exist concerning their glial versus ependymal identity. We used an induci- ble transgenic mouse line (hGFAP-CreERT2) to conditionally label GFAP-expressing cells in the adult SVZ and SC periaque- duct, and directly and systematically compared their self-renewal and multipotential properties in vitro. We demonstrate that a population of GFAP1 cells that share the morphology and the antigenic properties of SVZ-NSCs mostly reside in the dorsal aspect of the central canal (CC) throughout the spinal cord. These cells are non-proliferative in the intact spinal cord, but incorporate the S-phase marker EdU following spinal cord injury. Multipotent, clonal YFP-expressing neurospheres (i.e., deriv- ing from recombined GFAP-expressing cells) were successfully obtained from both the intact and injured spinal cord. These spheres however showed limited self-renewal properties when compared with SVZ-neurospheres, even after spinal cord injury. Altogether, these results demonstrate that significant differences exist in NSCs lineages between neurogenic and non- neurogenic regions of the adult CNS. Thus, although we confirm that a population of multipotent GFAP1 cells co-exists alongside with multipotent ependymal cells within the adult SC, we identify these cells as multipotent progenitors showing limited self-renewal properties

Planar cell polarity-mediated induction of neural stem cell expansion during axolotl spinal cord regeneration

Axolotls are uniquely able to mobilize neural stem cells to regenerate all missing regions of the spinal cord. How a neural stem cell under homeostasis converts after injury to a highly regenerative cell remains unknown. Here, we show that during regeneration, axolotl neural stem cells repress neurogenic genes and reactivate a transcriptional program similar to embryonic neuroepithelial cells. This dedifferentiation includes the acquisition of rapid cell cycles, the switch from neurogenic to proliferative divisions, and the re-expression of planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway components. We show that PCP induction is essential to reorient mitotic spindles along the anterior-posterior axis of elongation, and orthogonal to the cell apical-basal axis. Disruption of this property results in premature neurogenesis and halts regeneration. Our findings reveal a key role for PCP in coordinating the morphogenesis of spinal cord outgrowth with the switch from a homeostatic to a regenerative stem cell that restores missing tissue.Fil: Rodrigo Albors, Aida. Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft; Alemania. Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics; Alemania. Technische Universitat Dresden; AlemaniaFil: Tazaky, Akira. Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft; Alemania. Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics; Alemania. Technische Universitat Dresden; AlemaniaFil: Rost, Fabian. Technische Universitat Dresden; AlemaniaFil: Nowoshilow, Sergej. Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft; Alemania. Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics; Alemania. Technische Universitat Dresden; AlemaniaFil: Chara, Osvaldo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Física de Líquidos y Sistemas Biológicos. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Física de Líquidos y Sistemas Biológicos; Argentina. Technische Universitat Dresden; AlemaniaFil: Tanaka, Elly M. Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft; Alemania. Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics; Alemania. Technische Universitat Dresden; Alemani

Non-mammalian model systems for studying neuro-immune interactions after spinal cord injury

Mammals exhibit poor recovery after injury to the spinal cord, where the loss of neurons and neuronal connections can be functionally devastating. In contrast, it has long been appreciated that many non-mammalian vertebrate species exhibit significant spontaneous functional recovery after spinal cord injury (SCI). Identifying the biological responses that support an organism\u27s inability or ability to recover function after SCI is an important scientific and medical question. While recent advances have been made in understanding the responses to SCI in mammals, we remain without an effective clinical therapy for SCI. A comparative biological approach to understanding responses to SCI in non-mammalian vertebrates will yield important insights into mechanisms that promote recovery after SCI. Presently, mechanistic studies aimed at elucidating responses, both intrinsic and extrinsic to neurons, that result in different regenerative capacities after SCI across vertebrates are just in their early stages. There are several inhibitory mechanisms proposed to impede recovery from SCI in mammals, including reactive gliosis and scarring, myelin associated proteins, and a suboptimal immune response. One hypothesis to explain the robust regenerative capacity of several non-mammalian vertebrates is a lack of some or all of these inhibitory signals. This review presents the current knowledge of immune responses to SCI in several non-mammalian species that achieve anatomical and functional recovery after SCI. This subject is of growing interest, as studies increasingly show both beneficial and detrimental roles of the immune response following SCI in mammals. A long-term goal of biomedical research in all experimental models of SCI is to understand how to promote functional recovery after SCI in humans. Therefore, understanding immune responses to SCI in non-mammalian vertebrates that achieve functional recovery spontaneously may identify novel strategies to modulate immune responses in less regenerative species and promote recovery after SCI

Quasi-stable temperature of the steady state of microwave heated hematite

Microwave heated materials often reach a quasi-stable temperature resulting in thermal runaway. To control steady state in microwave processing, it is important to predict the quasi-stable temperature of the steady state. We demonstrated that the microwave heating behavior of hematite varies significantly with its initial temperature. In microwave heating, hematite samples could not be heated from room temperature, whereas hematite samples preheated to 410 °C or higher was heated to a temperature of 1020 °C. The microwave heating behavior can be accurately predicted by considering the steady-state energy balance