Biology subjects

Chou, T.-W.

Publications and source records attributed to Chou, T.-W..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2021

Zika virus-induced TNF-α signaling dysregulates expression of neurologic genes associated with psychiatric disorders

Zika virus (ZIKV) is an emerging flavivirus of global concern. ZIKV infection of the central nervous system has been linked to a variety of clinical syndromes, including microcephaly in fetuses and rare but serious neurologic disease in adults. However, the potential for ZIKV to influence brain physiology and host behavior following recovery from apparently mild or subclinical infection is less well understood. Furthermore, though deficits in cognitive function are well-documented following recovery from neuroinvasive viral infection, the potential impact of ZIKV on other host behavioral domains has not been thoroughly explored. In our study, we performed transcriptomic profiling of primary neuron cultures following ZIKV infection, which revealed altered expression of key genes associated with major psychiatric disorders, such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Gene ontology enrichment analysis also revealed significant changes in gene expression associated with fundamental neurobiological processes, including neuronal development, neurotransmission, and others. These alterations to neurologic gene expression were also observed in the brain in vivo using an immunocompetent mouse model of ZIKV infection. Mechanistic studies identified TNF- signaling via TNFR1 as a major regulatory mechanism controlling ZIKV-induced changes to neurologic gene expression. Our studies reveal that cell-intrinsic innate immune responses to ZIKV infection profoundly shape neuronal transcriptional profiles, highlighting the need to further explore associations between ZIKV infection and disordered host behavioral states.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2020

Fibrillar α-synuclein induces neurotoxic astrocyte activation via RIP kinase signaling and NF-κB

Parkinsons disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by death of midbrain dopamine neurons. The pathogenesis of PD is poorly understood, though misfolded and/or aggregated forms of the protein -synuclein have been implicated in several neurodegenerative disease processes, including neuroinflammation and astrocyte activation. Astrocytes in the midbrain play complex roles during PD, initiating both harmful and protective processes that vary over the course of disease. However, despite their significant regulatory roles during neurodegeneration, the cellular and molecular mechanisms that promote pathogenic astrocyte activity remain mysterious. Here, we show that -synuclein preformed fibrils (PFFs) induce pathogenic activation of human midbrain astrocytes, marked by inflammatory transcriptional responses, downregulation of phagocytic function, and conferral of neurotoxic activity. These effects required the necroptotic kinases RIPK1 and RIPK3, but were independent of MLKL and necroptosis. Instead, both transcriptional and functional markers of astrocyte activation occurred via RIPK-dependent activation of NF-{kappa}B signaling. Our study identifies a previously unknown function for -synuclein in promoting neurotoxic astrocyte activation, as well as new cell death-independent roles for RIP kinase signaling in the regulation of glial cell biology and neuroinflammation. Together, these findings highlight previously unappreciated molecular mechanisms of pathologic astrocyte activation and neuronal cell death with implications for Parkinsonian neurodegeneration.

neuroscience↗