Microglia are resident brain macrophages that become activated and proliferate following brain damage or stimulation by immune mediators, such as IL-1β or TNF-α. We investigated the mechanisms by which microglial proliferation is regulated in primary cultures of rat glia. We found that basal proliferation of microglia was stimulated by proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β or TNF-α, and this proliferation was completely inhibited by catalase, implicating hydrogen peroxide as a mediator of proliferation. In addition, inhibitors of NADPH oxidase (diphenylene iodonium or apocynin) also prevented microglia proliferation, suggesting that this may be the source of hydrogen peroxide. IL-1β and TNF-α rapidly stimulated the rate of hydrogen peroxide produced by isolated microglia, and this was inhibited by diphenylene iodonium, implying that the cytokines were acting directly on microglia to stimulate the NADPH oxidase. Low concentrations of PMA or arachidonic acid (known activators of NADPH oxidase) or xanthine/xanthine oxidase or glucose oxidase (generating hydrogen peroxide) also increased microglia proliferation and this was blocked by catalase, showing that NADPH oxidase activation or hydrogen peroxide was sufficient to stimulate microglia proliferation. In contrast to microglia, the proliferation of astrocytes was unaffected by the presence of catalase. In conclusion, these findings indicate that microglial proliferation in response to IL-1β or TNF-α is mediated by hydrogen peroxide from NADPH oxidase.

Each year, millions of individuals suffer from a non-healing wound, abnormal scarring, or injuries accompanied by an infection. For these cases, scientists are searching for new therapeutic interventions, from which one of the most promising is the use of extracellular vesicles (EVs). Naturally, EV-based signaling takes part in all four wound healing phases: hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling. Such an extensive involvement of EVs suggests exploiting their action to modulate the impaired healing phase. Furthermore, next to their natural wound healing capacity, EVs can be engineered for better defined pharmaceutical purposes, such as carrying specific cargo or targeting specific destinations by labelling them with certain surface proteins. This review aims to promote scientific awareness in basic and translational research of EVs by summarizing the current knowledge about their natural role in each stage of skin repair and the most recent findings in application areas, such as wound healing, skin regeneration, and treatment of dermal diseases, including the stem cell-derived, plant-derived, and engineered EVs.

Background: Alzheimer's disease is characterized by the accumulation of neuritic plaques, containing activated microglia and β-amyloid peptides (Aβ). Fibrillar Aβ can activate microglia, resulting in production of toxic and inflammatory mediators like hydrogen peroxide, nitric oxide, and cytokines. We have recently found that microglial proliferation is regulated by hydrogen peroxide derived from NADPH oxidase. Thus, in this study, we investigated whether Aβ can stimulate microglial proliferation and cytokine production via activation of NADPH oxidase to produce hydrogen peroxide.Methods: Primary mixed glial cultures were prepared from the cerebral cortices of 7-day-old Wistar rats. At confluency, microglial cells were isolated by tapping, replated, and treated either with or without Aβ. Hydrogen peroxide production by cells was measured with Amplex Red and peroxidase. Microglial proliferation was assessed under a microscope 0, 24 and 48 hours after plating. TNF-α and IL-1β levels in the culture medium were assessed by ELISA.Results: We found that 1 μM fibrillar (but not soluble) Aβ_1–40peptide induced microglial proliferation and caused release of hydrogen peroxide, TNF-α and IL-1β from microglial cells. Proliferation was prevented by the NADPH oxidase inhibitor apocynin (10 μM), by the hydrogen peroxide-degrading enzyme catalase (60 U/ml), and by its mimetics EUK-8 and EUK-134 (20 μM); as well as by an antibody against TNF-α and by a soluble TNF receptor inhibitor. Production of TNF-α and IL-1β, measured after 24 hours of Aβ treatment, was also prevented by apocynin, catalase and EUKs, but the early release (measured after 1 hour of Aβ treatment) of TNF-α was insensitive to apocynin or catalase.Conclusion: These results indicate that Aβ_1–40-induced microglial proliferation is mediated both by microglial release of TNF-α and production of hydrogen peroxide from NADPH oxidase. This suggests that TNF-α and NADPH oxidase, and its products, are potential targets to prevent Aβ-induced inflammatory neurodegeneration.