title: Microglial intracellular Ca(2+) signaling as a target of antipsychotic actions for the treatment of schizophrenia.
abstract: Microglia are resident innate immune cells which release many factors including proinflammatory cytokines, nitric oxide (NO) and neurotrophic factors when they are activated in response to immunological stimuli. Recent reports show that pathophysiology of schizophrenia is related to the inflammatory responses mediated by microglia. Intracellular Ca(2+) signaling, which is mainly controlled by the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), is important for microglial functions such as release of NO and cytokines, migration, ramification and deramification. In addition, alteration of intracellular Ca(2+) signaling underlies the pathophysiology of schizophrenia, while it remains unclear how typical or atypical antipsychotics affect intracellular Ca(2+) mobilization in microglial cells. This mini-review article summarizes recent findings on cellular mechanisms underlying the characteristic differences in the actions of antipsychotics on microglial intracellular Ca(2+) signaling and reinforces the importance of the ER of microglial cells as a target of antipsychotics for the treatment of schizophrenia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University Saga, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshito
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mizoguchi
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University Fukuoka, Japan ; Innovation Center for Medical Redox Navigation, Kyushu University Fukuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Takahiro A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University Fukuoka, Japan.
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Horikawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Saga University Saga, Japan.
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Monji
keywords: BDNF; antipsychotic; calcium; endoplasmic reticulum; microglia; proBDNF; schizophrenia