Study Reveals Why Protective Immune Response Can Sometimes Kill Neurons
National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists studying inflammation of the brain have discovered why certain immune responses, which typically help cells recognize and fight viral and bacterial infections, can sometimes be harmful to the brain.
The research is in Journal of Immunology. (full access paywall)
Research: “SARM1, Not MyD88, Mediates TLR7/TLR9-Induced Apoptosis in Neurons” by Piyali Mukherjee, Clayton W. Winkler, Katherine G. Taylor, Tyson A. Woods, Vinod Nair, Burhan A. Khan and Karin E. Peterson in Journal of Immunology doi:10.4049/jimmunol.1500953
Image: The immune system protein SARM1 (red) extends to the string-like fibers (axons) of nerve cells in the brains of mice infected with La Crosse virus. Credit: NIAID.