Topic: neuronal survival

Semaphorin 3A (SEMA3A) is a repellent guidance cue considered instrumental in many processes that shape the nervous system during development. It is produced as a secreted protein in mammals and exerts both autocrine and paracrine functions. Interestingly, emerging evidence highlights the association of genetic and functional alterations in SEMA3A or its receptors (NRP1 and PLXNA2) with neurodevelopmental disorders. Indeed, increased SEMA3A expression levels have been detected in the brains of patients with schizophrenia, and several mutations in the SEMA3A, NRP1, or PLXNA2 genes have been des

Adult hippocampal neurogenesis (AHN) occurs the dentate gyrus (DG) and is a dynamic process which functions in learning and memory. Increased AHN improves cognition and is therapeutic for neurodegeneration. However, loss of AHN is implicated in neurodegenerative disorders, thus understanding the mechanisms that modulate AHN could lead to targeted therapeutics. The master regulator of neuroinflammation, Interleukin-1 (IL-1), is a proinflammatory cytokine that signals via interleukin 1 receptor type 1 (IL-1R1) and decreases AHN. However, blockade of IL-1 signaling suppresses AHN indicating IL-1

This research project investigates the role of lipid droplets (LDs) in neuronal survival and dysfunction, focussing on two human in vitro models of neurodegenerative diseases (NDs): neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell line exposed to 6-OHDA for Parkinson’s, and primary human fibroblasts from Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients.Valid and reliable experimental tools for LDs detection and quantification were set up in SH-SY5Y. Confocal laser scanning microscopy was combined with image analysis, allowing an automatic and objective quantification of LDs in basal conditions, and in response to LDs modulation a