Shen Yuqing, Zhang Jianqiong
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical School, Southeast University, Nanjing, China.
Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Critical Care Medicine, Department of Critical Care Medicine, School of Medicine, Zhongda Hospital, Southeast University, Nanjing, China.
Front Cell Neurosci. 2021 Oct 1;15:739136. doi: 10.3389/fncel.2021.739136. eCollection 2021.
The expression and function of immune molecules, such as major histocompatibility complex (MHC), within the developing and adult brain have been discovered over the past few years. Studies utilizing classical class I MHC knockout animals suggest that these molecules, in fact, play essential roles in the establishment, function, and modification of synapses in the CNS. Altered neuronal expression of class I MHC, as has been reported in pathological conditions, leads to aberrations in neuronal development and repair. In the hippocampus, cellular and molecular mechanisms that regulate synaptic plasticity have heretofore been extensively studied. It is for this reason that multiple studies directed at better understanding the expression, regulation, and function of class I MHC within the hippocampus have been undertaken. Since several previous reviews have addressed the roles of class I MHC in the formation and function of hippocampal connections, the present review will focus on describing the spatial and temporal expression of class I MHC in developing, healthy adult, and aging hippocampus. Herein, we also review current literatures exploring mechanisms that regulate class I MHC expression in murine hippocampus. With this review, we aim to facilitate a deeper mechanistic understanding into the complex tight regulation of MHC I expression in hippocampus, which are needed as we explore the potential for targeting MHC I for therapeutic intervention in normal aging and in neurodegenerative diseases in the future.
在过去几年中，人们发现了免疫分子，如主要组织相容性复合体（MHC）在发育中和成年大脑中的表达及功能。利用经典I类MHC基因敲除动物进行的研究表明，这些分子实际上在中枢神经系统突触的建立、功能和修饰中发挥着重要作用。正如在病理条件下所报道的那样，I类MHC的神经元表达改变会导致神经元发育和修复异常。在海马体中，调节突触可塑性的细胞和分子机制此前已得到广泛研究。正是出于这个原因，人们开展了多项旨在更好地理解海马体中I类MHC的表达、调节和功能的研究。由于此前已有几篇综述探讨了I类MHC在海马体连接形成和功能中的作用，本综述将重点描述I类MHC在发育中的、健康成年的和衰老的海马体中的时空表达。在此，我们还回顾了探索调节小鼠海马体中I类MHC表达机制的当前文献。通过本综述，我们旨在促进对海马体中MHC I表达复杂严格调控的更深入机制理解，这是我们未来探索将MHC I作为正常衰老和神经退行性疾病治疗干预靶点的潜力时所需要的。
