Neuroinflammation, Neurodegeneration, and Repair Flashcards
•Inflammation in the brain is characterized by activation of __________ and ____________.
microglia and astrocytes.
What are the classical signs of inflammation?
Swlling, Redness, heat and pain
NOTE: This occurs in all tissues of the body, except the BRAIN
Why is there no pain in the brain?
No nociceptors
When does the response to inflammatory factors start?
When the toxic chemicals or large molecules pass through blood brain barrier and activate the immune system. Then that is beneficial because as soon as microglia travel to that area, they can release cytokines, that is good for us.
What problem does ischemia of tissues cause?
axons cannot fire at the same time, so your action potential is inhibited so the cell function is reduced.
What is the difference between acute and chronic neuroinflammation?
In chronic inflammation, the inflammation as lasted more than 1 week. There is also a sustained release of glial cells and recruitment of other cells.
Although the blood-brain-barrier serves as an effective barrier for the majority of the tissue, the __________ organs may present a vulnerable location for signaling from the systemic circulation
circumventricular
In the indirect pathway, cytokines circulating within the bloodstream can signal via binding to receptors on neurovascular ___________.
endothelial cells.
The ____________, together with the __________, form an inflammatory reflex that continually monitors and modulates the inflammatory status in the periphery
sensory vagal afferents;regulatory vagal efferents
In the elderly, inflammatory mechanisms have been associated with the pathogenesis of _________and functional impairment
dementia
From the blood in the periphery, we get T cells, b cells, and macrophages. Why do we need them in the brain?
Sometimes the immune system in the brain cannot handle the severity of insult in that area. The supplementary immune system gives us B cells and T cells.
Which two compounds increased the expression of microglia-associated factors?
METH and MPTP
What are the two types of astrocytes? What are some characteristics of each?
- Protoplasmic astrocytes have short branches and are found in gray matter.
- Fibrous astrocytes have many long unbranched processes and are located in manly in white matter.
The onset of inflammation is often characterized by the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. What are they?
TNF
IL-1
*local synthesis of inflammatory-related cytokines such as IL-1 and TNFα elicits a wide range of effects including, cell adhesion, migration, survival, differentiation, replication, secretory function, and cell death.
In this picture you see both resting and activated microglia. When they are activated they lose their processes because they travel and release. What happened?
Initially they activate pro-inflammatory cytokines, but as they persist they will release more toxins and kill all cells. Pro-inflammatory is bad so anti-inflammatory is good. They can also release anti-inflammatory, which includes brain drive to neural factors (NGF)
When are glial beneficial and when are the disadvantageous?
M1= good
M2= bad
*•The beneficial microglia are anti-inflammatory phenotype, so it is involved with repair initially. Then they can change it to M2 which is protection from inflammatory cytokines and reactive oxygenated species, so the cells can survive
What is akey feauture of all neurodegenerative diseases?
The presence of chromic oxidative stress
*causes genetic structural alteration, lipid and protein, resulting in neurodegeneration.
NOTE: Microglia are the main source of reactive oxidative species and other sources of neurotoxicity
What are the three main causes of neuroinflammation?
- Autoimmunity
- Microorganisms (microbes & Viruses)
- Aging
is MS a disease of the CNS or the PNS?
CNS
What are the symptoms of MS?
balance-loss, numbness, difficulty walking, weakness, bowel and bladder symptoms, eye symptoms (double vision, vision loss) and other symptoms, including pain, depression, memory loss and poor judgment.
Autonomic neuropathy
caused by damage to the peripheral autonomic nerves supplying the internal organs, blood vessels, and the skin
What are the symptoms of autonomic neuropathy?
Orthostatic hypotension
Nausea or vomiting
Diarrhea or constipation
Abdominal bloating
Urinary incontinence
Erectile dysfunction
True or false. GBS does not affect level of consciousness, pupillary function, or cerebral function.
True
In myasthenia gravis, antibodies block the acetylcholine receptors. What happens as a result of this?
- This leads to a decrease in end plate depolarization, which may be insufficient to generate an action potential.
- Results in a failure of the muscle to contract
