title: Peripheral elevation of TNF-α leads to early synaptic abnormalities in the mouse somatosensory cortex in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.
abstract: Sensory abnormalities such as numbness and paresthesias are often the earliest symptoms in neuroinflammatory diseases including multiple sclerosis. The increased production of various cytokines occurs in the early stages of neuroinflammation and could have detrimental effects on the central nervous system, thereby contributing to sensory and cognitive deficits. However, it remains unknown whether and when elevation of cytokines causes changes in brain structure and function under inflammatory conditions. To address this question, we used a mouse model for experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) to examine the effect of inflammation and cytokine elevation on synaptic connections in the primary somatosensory cortex. Using in vivo two-photon microscopy, we found that the elimination and formation rates of dendritic spines and axonal boutons increased within 7 d of EAE induction--several days before the onset of paralysis--and continued to rise during the course of the disease. This synaptic instability occurred before T-cell infiltration and microglial activation in the central nervous system and was in conjunction with peripheral, but not central, production of TNF-α. Peripheral administration of a soluble TNF inhibitor prevented abnormal turnover of dendritic spines and axonal boutons in presymptomatic EAE mice. These findings indicate that peripheral production of TNF-α is a key mediator of synaptic instability in the primary somatosensory cortex and may contribute to sensory and cognitive deficits seen in autoimmune diseases.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Neurobiology Program, Skirball Institute, Department of Physiology and Neuroscience, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, USA. guang.yang@nyumc.org
authors.forename: Guang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Christopher N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Parkhurst
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.forename: Wen-Biao
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Gan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001369:Axons / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D049229:Dendritic Spines / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004681:Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D017628:Microglia / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D010243:Paralysis / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D017729:Presynaptic Terminals / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D013003:Somatosensory Cortex / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha