Microglia activation and interaction with neuronal cells in a biochemical model of mevalonate kinase deficiency

Abstract Mevalonate kinase deficiency is a rare disease whose worst manifestation, characterised by severe neurologic impairment, is called mevalonic aciduria. The progressive neuronal loss associated to cell death can be studied in vitro with a simplified model based on a biochemical block of the mevalonate pathway and a subsequent inflammatory trigger. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the mevalonate blocking on glial cells (BV-2) and the following effects on neuronal cells (SH-SY5Y) when the two populations were cultured together. To better understand the cross-talk between glial and neuronal cells, as it happens in vivo, BV-2 and SH-SY5Y were co-cultured in different experimental settings (alone, transwell, direct contact); the effect of mevalonate pathway biochemical block by Lovastatin, followed by LPS inflammatory trigger, were evaluated by analysing programmed cell death and mitochondrial membrane potential, cytokines’ release and cells’ morphology modifications. In this experimental condition, glial cells underwent an evident activation, confirmed by elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines release, typical of these disorders, and a modification in morphology. Moreover, the activation induced an increase in apoptosis. When glial cells were co-cultured with neurons, their activation caused an increase of programmed cell death also in neuronal cells, but only if the two populations were cultured in direct contact. Our findings, being ...
Source: Apoptosis - Category: Molecular Biology Source Type: research