Identification of secondary microglial formation centers in the human fetal brain - PubMed
5 hours ago
- #microglia
- #fetal brain development
- #neurodevelopment
- Researchers identified a large proliferative microglial aggregate near the lateral ganglionic eminence in 5-22 gestational week human fetal brains, termed the secondary microglial formation center (SMFC).
- The SMFC showed high microglial proliferation (26.65% Ki67+), increased in Down's syndrome (38.9%) and Edwards syndrome (46.3%), and was characterized by absence of phagocytic structures, high CSF-1R expression, and abundant IL-34+ cells.
- Chimeric microglia-human cortical organoids recapitulated the SMFC in an IL-34- and CSF-1R-dependent manner, suggesting it compensates for microglial shortages during rapid brain expansion.