Neural Cell News

Neural Cell News is an online resource covering the latest research in neuroscience, neural stem cells, and neurological conditions.

Circadian Clock Disruption Promotes the Degeneration of Dopaminergic Neurons in Male Drosophila

September 25, 2023

[Nature Communications] Investigators demonstrated that circadian clocks regulated the rhythmicity and magnitude of the vulnerability of dopaminergic neurons to oxidative stress in male Drosophila.

Identification of a miRNA Multi-Targeting Therapeutic Strategy in Glioblastoma

September 25, 2023

[Cell Death & Disease] Using an integrative and comprehensive analysis of the TCGA database and the transcriptome of glioblastoma (GBM) biopsies, the authors identified three critical and clinically relevant miRNAs for GBM, miR-17-3p, miR-222, and miR-340.

PLEKHA4 Promotes Glioblastoma Progression through Apoptosis Inhibition, Tumor Cell Migration, and Macrophage Infiltration

September 25, 2023

[Immunobiology] Scientists analyzed PLEKHA4 expression in tumor tissues using the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Gene Expression Omnibus databases. Additionally, they utilized TCGA data to investigate its impact on prognosis, pathway enrichment, and immune infiltration.

Brain Canada’s Flagship Program Awards $2.8 Million for Brain Research

September 25, 2023

[Brain Canada Foundation (Globe Newswire)] The Future Leaders in Canadian Brain Research program aims to accelerate novel and transformative research that will fundamentally change our understanding of nervous system function and dysfunction and their impact on health.

Microglia-Dependent Neuroprotective Effects of 4-Octyl Itaconate Against Rotenone– and MPP+–Induced Neurotoxicity in Parkinson’s Disease

September 22, 2023

[Scientific Reports] Researchers investigated the neuroprotective potential of 4-octyl itaconate, a cell-permeable derivative of itaconate, in cellular models of Parkinson’s disease.

Stem Cells-Derived Exosomes Alleviate Neurodegeneration and Alzheimer’s Pathogenesis by Ameliorating Neuroinflamation, and Regulating the Associated Molecular Pathways

September 22, 2023

[Scientific Reports] Investigators examined how NSC-exos could protect human neuroblastoma cells SH-SY5Y. NSC-exos were derived from human NSCs by ultracentrifugation and the therapeutic effects of the NSC-exos were then investigated in vitro.

3D Chitosan Scaffolds Support Expansion of Human Neural Stem Cells in Chemically Defined Condition

September 20, 2023

[Matter] Researchers introduced chitosan scaffolds as an alternative culture platform to costly animal-sourced feeders, Matrigel, and Geltrex for human neural stem cell expansion.

Parkinson’s Disease-Linked Parkin Mutation Disrupts Recycling of Synaptic Vesicles in Human Dopaminergic Neurons

September 20, 2023

[Neuron] Using patient-derived dopaminergic neurons, investigators found that phosphorylation of parkin by Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase 2 at Ser9 led to activation of parkin in a neuronal-activity-dependent manner.

Circular RNAs in the Human Brain Are Tailored to Neuron Identity and Neuropsychiatric Disease

September 20, 2023

[Nature Communications] Scientists systematically identified over 11,039 circRNAs expressed in vulnerable dopamine and pyramidal neurons laser-captured from 190 human brains and non-neuronal cells using ultra-deep, total RNA sequencing.

Loss of Microglial MCT4 Leads to Defective Synaptic Pruning and Anxiety-Like Behavior in Mice

September 20, 2023

[Nature Communications] Researchers showed that microglia could import lactate, and this was coupled with increased lysosomal acidification. In vitro, loss of the monocarboxylate transporter MCT4 in microglia prevented lactate-induced lysosomal modulation and led to defective cargo degradation.

Sodium Channel Endocytosis Drives Axon Initial Segment Plasticity

September 20, 2023

[Science Advances] The authors developed genetic tools to label endogenous sodium channels and their scaffolding protein, to reveal their nanoscale organization and longitudinally image axon initial segment plasticity in hippocampal neurons in slices and primary cultures.

Evolving Prion-Like Tau Conformers Differentially Alter Postsynaptic Proteins in Neurons Inoculated with Distinct Isolates of Alzheimer’s Disease Tau

September 20, 2023

[Cell & Bioscience] To model the mechanism of tau propagation and synaptic toxicity of distinct tau conformers,scientists inoculated wild-type primary mouse neurons with structurally characterized Sarkosyl-insoluble tau isolates from the frontal cortex of six Alzheimer’s disease cases and monitored the impact for 14 days.

Neural Cell News helps scientists keep pace with the latest research, reviews, and industry developments in neuroscience. Specific research topics include neural development and neuroregeneration, neural signaling related to cellular responses and behavior, and synaptic plasticity. Research into the diagnosis, progression, cellular characteristics, and treatment of brain diseases such as Parkinson’s, Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimer’s, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and various brain cancers, as well as brain damage resulting from infection, trauma, stroke, seizures, and tumors, is also covered.