The Department of Neurosurgery, McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA.
Center for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, UT Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.
Aging Dis. 2024 Mar 4;15(6):2752-2769. doi: 10.14336/AD.2024.0205-1.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by the presence of two hallmark pathologies: the accumulation of Amyloid beta (Aβ) and tau proteins in the brain. There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that astrocytes, a type of glial cell in the brain, play crucial roles in clearing Aβ and binding to tau proteins. However, due to the heterogeneity of astrocytes, the specific roles of different astrocyte subpopulations in response to Aβ and tau remain unclear. To enhance the understanding of astrocyte subpopulations in AD, we investigated astrocyte lineage cells based on single-nuclei transcriptomic data obtained from both human and mouse samples. We characterized the diversity of astrocytes and identified global and subpopulation-specific transcriptomic changes between control and AD samples. Our findings revealed the existence of a specific astrocyte subpopulation marked by low levels of GFAP and the presence of AQP4 and CD63 expression, which showed functional enrichment in Aβ clearance and tau protein binding, and diminished in AD. We verified this type of astrocytes in mouse models and in AD patient brain samples. Furthermore, our research also unveiled significant alterations of the ligand-receptor interactions between astrocytes and other cell types. These changes underscore the complex interplay between astrocytes and neighboring cells in the context of AD. Overall, our work gives insights into astrocyte heterogeneity in the context of AD and reveals a distinct astrocyte subpopulation that holds potential for therapeutic interventions in AD. Targeting specific astrocyte subpopulations may offer new avenues for the development of novel treatments for AD.
阿尔茨海默病(AD)的特征是存在两种标志性病理:大脑中淀粉样β(Aβ)和tau 蛋白的积累。越来越多的证据表明,星形胶质细胞,大脑中的一种神经胶质细胞,在清除 Aβ和与 tau 蛋白结合方面发挥着关键作用。然而,由于星形胶质细胞的异质性,不同星形胶质细胞亚群在应对 Aβ和 tau 时的具体作用仍不清楚。为了增强对 AD 中星形胶质细胞亚群的理解,我们基于从人类和小鼠样本中获得的单细胞转录组数据研究了星形胶质细胞谱系细胞。我们描述了星形胶质细胞的多样性,并确定了对照和 AD 样本之间的整体和亚群特异性转录组变化。我们的研究结果揭示了一种特定的星形胶质细胞亚群的存在,其特征是低水平的 GFAP 和存在 AQP4 和 CD63 的表达,该亚群在 Aβ清除和 tau 蛋白结合方面表现出功能富集,而在 AD 中则减少。我们在小鼠模型和 AD 患者脑样本中验证了这种类型的星形胶质细胞。此外,我们的研究还揭示了星形胶质细胞与其他细胞类型之间的配体-受体相互作用的显著改变。这些变化强调了在 AD 背景下星形胶质细胞与邻近细胞之间的复杂相互作用。总的来说,我们的工作深入了解了 AD 背景下星形胶质细胞的异质性,并揭示了一种具有治疗 AD 潜力的独特星形胶质细胞亚群。针对特定的星形胶质细胞亚群可能为 AD 的新型治疗方法的开发提供新途径。