Type I interferon responsive microglia shape cortical development and behavior.

ABSTRACT: Microglia are brain resident phagocytes that can engulf synaptic components and extracellular matrix as well as whole neurons. However, whether there are unique molecular mechanisms that regulate these distinct phagocytic states is unknown. Here we define a molecularly distinct microglial subset whose function is to engulf neurons in the developing brain. We transcriptomically identified a cluster of Type I interferon (IFN-I) responsive microglia that expanded 20-fold in the postnatal day 5 somatosensory cortex after partial whisker deprivation, a stressor that accelerates neural circuit remodeling. In situ, IFN-I responsive microglia were highly phagocytic and actively engulfed whole neurons. Conditional deletion of IFN-I signaling (Ifnar1^fl/fl) in microgli

SUBMITTER: Escoubas CC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8887080 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature