Enhanced engulfment by microglia and oligodendrocyte precursor cells contributes to synapse loss in the primary visual cortex following optic nerve injury - PubMed
4 hours ago
- #glial cells
- #neuroinflammation
- #synaptic plasticity
- Optic nerve injury causes synaptic impairment and changes in glial cells in the contralateral primary visual cortex (V1).
- Synapse loss in V1 after injury is linked to increased engulfment of synapses by microglia and oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs), but not astrocytes.
- Enhanced phagocytic activity by microglia and OPCs, evidenced by elevated vGluT2 engulfment and increased expression of phagocytic genes like C1q and MERTK, contributes to the observed synaptic reductions.