Glioma is the most common and malignant tumor of the central nervous system. Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most aggressive glioma, with a poor prognosis and no effective treatment because of its high invasiveness, metabolic rate, and heterogeneity. The tumor microenvironment (TME) contains many tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), which play a critical role in tumor proliferation, invasion, metastasis, and angiogenesis and indirectly promote an immunosuppressive microenvironment. TAM is divided into tumor-suppressive M1-like (classic activation of macrophages) and tumor-supportive M2-like (alternatively activated macrophages) polarized cells. TAMs exhibit an M1-like phenotype in the initial stages of tumor progression, and along with the promotion of lysing tumors and the functions of T cells and NK cells, tumor growth is suppressed, and they rapidly transform into M2-like polarized macrophages, which promote tumor progression. In this review, we discuss the mechanism by which M1- and M2-polarized macrophages promote or inhibit the growth of glioblastoma and indicate the future directions for treatment.
5 February 2023 in CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics
Introduction: The relationship between oscillatory activity in hippocampus and cognitive impairment in traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains unclear. Although TBI decreases gamma oscillations and 40 Hz light flicker improves TBI prognosis, the effects and mechanism of rhythmic flicker on TBI remain unclear.Aims: In this study, we aimed to explore whether light flicker could reverse cognitive deficits, and further explore its potential mechanisms in TBI mouse model.Methods: The Morris water maze test (MWM), step‐down test (SDT), and novel object recognition test (NOR) were applied to evaluate the cognitive ability. The local field potential (LFP) recording was applied to measure low gamma reduction of CA1 in hippocampus after TBI. And electrophysiological experiments were applied to explore effects of the gamma frequency entrainment on long‐term potentiation (LTP), postsynaptic transmission, and intrinsic excitability of CA1 pyramidal cells (PCs) in TBI mice. Immunofluorescence staining and western blotting were applied to explore the effects of 40 Hz light flicker on the expression of PSD95 in hippocampus of TBI mice.Results: We found that 40 Hz light flicker restored low gamma reduction of CA1 in hippocampus after TBI. And 40 Hz, but not random or 80 Hz light flicker, reversed cognitive impairment after TBI in behavioral tests. Moreover, 40 Hz light flicker improved N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate (NMDA) receptor‐dependent LTP (LTPNMDAR) and L‐type voltage‐gated calcium channel‐dependent LTP (LTPL‐VGCC) after TBI treatment. And gamma frequency entrainment decreased excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) of CA1 PCs in TBI mice. Our results have illustrated that 40 Hz light flicker could decrease intrinsic excitability of PCs after TBI treatment in mice. Furthermore, 40 Hz light flicker decreased the expression of PSD95 in hippocampus of TBI mice.Conclusion: These results demonstrated that 40 Hz light flicker rescues cognitive impairment by decreasing postsynaptic transmission in PCs after TBI treatment in mice.
2 May 2022 in Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
Attention dysfunction has been observed among many kinds of nervous system diseases, including glioma. This study aimed to investigate the correlation between glioma localization, malignancy, postoperative recovery time and attention deficit. A total of 45 patients with glioma who underwent surgical resection and 18 healthy volunteers were enrolled. The attention network test, digital span test, color trail test II and Stroop test were used to detect the characteristics of attention deficit. Orientation network dysfunction was detected in the parietal lobe tumor group, and execution network deficit was detected in both the frontal and parietal lobe groups, while no significant difference was detected in the temporal lobe group compared to healthy controls. The high-grade glioma group (grade III-IV) exhibited more serious functional impairment than the low-grade group (grade I-II). No significant correlation was observed between postoperative recovery time and attention impairment. High-grade glioma patients suffer more severe attention impairment. In addition, the frontal and parietal lobe glioma patients suffer attention dysfunction in dissimilar manner. These findings will provide important guidance on the care of glioma patients after therapy.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is caused by acquired damage that includes cerebral edema after a mechanical injury and may cause cognitive impairment. We explored the role of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase 2 (NADPH oxidase 2; NOX2) and aquaporin-4 (AQP4) in the process of edema and cognitive abilities after TBI in NOX2−/− and AQP4−/− mice by using the Morris water maze test (MWM), step-down test (STD), novel object recognition test (NOR) and western blotting. Knockout of NOX2 in mice decreased the AQP4 and reduce edema in the hippocampus and cortex after TBI in mice. Moreover, inhibiting AQP4 by 2-(nicotinamide)-1,3,4-thiadiazole (TGN-020) or genetic deletion of AQP4 could attenuate neurological deficits without changing reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels after TBI in mice. Taken together, we suspected that inhibiting NOX2 could improve cognitive abilities by modulating ROS levels, then affecting AQP4 levels and brain edema after in TBI mice. Our study demonstrated that NOX2 play a key role in decreasing edema in brain and improving cognitive abilities by modulating AQP4 after TBI.