Studio finanziato dalla Brain Research Foundation Verona.

Articolo pubblicato online il 17 aprile 2022: https://doi.org/10.3390/biom12040588

© 2022 The Authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license.


Autori

Laura Cherchi, Daniela Anni, Mario Buffelli, Marco Cambiaghi.

Abstract

Early stroke therapeutic approaches rely on limited options, further characterized by a narrow therapeutic time window. In this context, the application of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in the acute phases after brain ischemia is emerging as a promising non-invasive tool. Despite the wide clinical application of tDCS, the cellular mechanisms underlying its positive effects are still poorly understood. Here, we explored the effects of cathodal tDCS (C-tDCS) 6 h after focal forelimb M1 ischemia in Cx3CR1GFP/+ mice. C-tDCS improved motor functionality of the affected forelimb, as assessed by the cylinder and foot-fault tests at 48 h, though not changing the ischemic volume. In parallel, histological analysis showed that motor recovery is associated with decreased microglial cell density in the area surrounding the ischemic core, while astrocytes were not affected. Deeper analysis of microglia morphology within the perilesional area revealed a shift toward a more ramified healthier state, with increased processes’ complexity and a less phagocytic anti-inflammatory activity. Taken together, our findings suggest a positive role for early C-tDCS after ischemia, which is able to modulate microglia phenotype and morphology in parallel to motor recovery. 

Responsabile: Laura Cherchi, Daniela Anni – Dipartimento di Neuroscienze, Università degli Studi di Verona


Articolo open access con licenza Creative Commons Attribution – NonCommercial – NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

You might also like