Institute of Neuroscience, Kunming Medical University, Kunming 650500, Yunnan, China.
Second Department of General Surgery, First People's Hospital of Yunnan Province, Kunming 650032, Yunnan, China.
Biomed Pharmacother. 2021 Dec;144:112273. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2021.112273. Epub 2021 Oct 23.
Neurogenesis in the adult brain is well recognized and plays a critical role in the maintenance of brain function and homeostasis. However, whether neurogenesis also occurs in the adult peripheral nervous system remains unknown. Here, using sensory ganglia (dorsal root ganglia, DRGs) as a model, we show that neurogenesis also occurs in the peripheral nervous system, but in a manner different from that in the central nervous system. Satellite glial cells (SGCs) express the neuronal precursor markers Nestin, POU domain, class 4, transcription factor 1, and p75 pan-neurotrophin receptor. Following sciatic nerve injury, the suppression of endogenous proBDNF by proBDNF antibodies resulted in the transformation of proliferating SGCs into doublecortin-positive cells in the DRGs. Using purified SGCs migrating out from the DRGs, the inhibition of endogenous proBDNF promoted the conversion of SGCs into neuronal phenotypes in vitro. Our findings suggest that SGCs are neuronal precursors, and that proBDNF maintains the SGC phenotype. Furthermore, the suppression of proBDNF signaling is necessary for neuronal phenotype acquisition by SGCs. Thus, we propose that peripheral neurogenesis may occur via the direct conversion of SGCs into neurons, and that this process is negatively regulated by proBDNF.
成人脑内的神经发生是众所周知的，并且在维持大脑功能和内稳态方面起着关键作用。然而，成人外周神经系统中是否也存在神经发生仍不清楚。在这里，我们以感觉神经节（背根神经节，DRG）为模型，表明神经发生也发生在外周神经系统中，但方式与中枢神经系统不同。卫星胶质细胞（SGCs）表达神经元前体标志物巢蛋白、POU 结构域，第 4 类，转录因子 1 和 p75 泛神经生长因子受体。坐骨神经损伤后，用 proBDNF 抗体抑制内源性 proBDNF 会导致 DRG 中增殖的 SGC 转化为双皮质素阳性细胞。使用从 DRG 中迁移出来的纯化 SGC，抑制内源性 proBDNF 可促进 SGC 在体外转化为神经元表型。我们的研究结果表明，SGC 是神经元前体，而 proBDNF 维持 SGC 表型。此外，抑制 proBDNF 信号对于 SGC 获得神经元表型是必需的。因此，我们提出外周神经发生可能通过 SGC 直接转化为神经元发生，并且该过程受到 proBDNF 的负调控。
