Project description:Microglia constitute the myeloid compartment of the Central Nervous System (CNS). scRNA sequencing was employed to decipher diverse microglia populations and other cell types from the cortex.
Project description:In the gastropod mollusc Lymnaea stagnalis, insulin-like peptides in the central nervous system (CNS) control behavioral changes associated with an associative learning. We examined the responding molecules in the CNS after insulin administration by protein analysis using comparative quantitative mass spectrometry.
Project description:Specific mRNAs are transported from the cell body to synapses where their translation can modify communication of pre-existing synapses and induce formation of new synaptic connections in response to learning. Little is known, however, about the identity of the RNAs that are actively transported and when and how these RNAs are utilized during learning. By focusing on RNAs that are associated with kinesin, a motor protein that transports gene products from the cell body to synapses, we have now applied microarrays and 454 sequencing to identify actively transported RNAs from the Aplysia central nervous system. Using a library prepared from the kinesin complex immunoprecipitated from the central nervous system (CNS), we have identified thousands of unique transcripts, of which ~600 mRNAs were annotated. Two sample comparison: kinesin IP vs. control.
Project description:Treatment for many viral infections of the central nervous system (CNS) remains only supportive. Here we address a remaining gap in our knowledge regarding how the CNS and immune systems interact during viral infection. By examining the regulation of the immune and nervous system processes in a nonhuman primate model of West Nile virus neurological disease, we show that virus infection disrupts the homeostasis of the immune-neural-synaptic axis via induction of pleiotropic genes with distinct functions in each component of the axis. This pleiotropic gene regulation suggests an unintended off-target negative impact of virus-induced host immune responses on the neurotransmission, which may be a common feature of various viral infections of the CNS.
Project description:Primary lymphomas of the central nervous system (PCNSL) are diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCLs) which are confined to the central nervous system (CNS). Paired RNA-Seq sequencing was done on Illumina HiSeq2000 machines using Illumina TruSeq RNA library preparation kit. About 36 tumor samples were sequenced.
Project description:Infections of the central nervous system (CNS) in humans are on the rise due to changing environmental conditions and increase in vulnerable populations comprised of immunocompromised subjects with primary (genetic) or secondary (acquired) immunodeficiency. Many viruses take the opportunity to invade the CNS by capitalizing on impaired immunity of the host. Here we investigate neuropathogenesis of a rare CNS infection in immunocompromised patients caused by the astrovirus and show that it shares many features with another opportunistic infection of the CNS associated with human immunodeficiency virus. We show that astrovirus infects CNS neurons with a major impact on the brainstem. This leads to disrupted synaptic integrity loss of afferent innervation related to infected neurons and global impairment of both excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission. In the settings of impaired peripheral adaptive immunity host responses to astrovirus infection are dominated by the microglia-macrophage-phagocytosis axis which may be a common compensatory defense mechanism employed by the CNS against opportunistic infections.
Project description:Primary lymphomas of the central nervous system (PCNSL) are diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCLs) which are confined to the central nervous system (CNS). Despite extensive research, the molecular alterations leading to PCNSL have not been fully elucidated. In order to provide a comprehensive description of the mutational landscape in PCNSL, we here performed integrative whole genome and transcriptome sequencing analysis of 51 lymphomas presenting in the CNS, including 42 EBV-negative PCNSL, 6 secondary CNS lymphomas (SCNSL) and 3 EBV+ CNSL.