Microglia: Rheostats of space radiation effects in the CNS microenvironment

Microglia are innate immune cells within the brain that arise from a distinct myeloid lineage. Like other tissue resident macrophages, microglia respond to injury or immune challenges and participate in reparative processes such as phagocytosis to preserve normal function. Importantly, they also par...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inLife sciences in space research Vol. 35; pp. 180 - 186
Main Author Kerry O'Banion, M.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Elsevier B.V 01.11.2022
Subjects
Cognitive dysfunction
Inflammaging
Neuroinflammation
Senescence
Space radiation
Neuroinflammation
Inflammaging
Senescence
Space radiation
Cognitive dysfunction
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Summary:Microglia are innate immune cells within the brain that arise from a distinct myeloid lineage. Like other tissue resident macrophages, microglia respond to injury or immune challenges and participate in reparative processes such as phagocytosis to preserve normal function. Importantly, they also participate in normal homeostatic processes including maintenance of neurogenic niches and synaptic plasticity associated with development. This review highlights aspects of microglial biology and how repeated insults that occur with age, neurodegenerative disease and possibly radiation exposure may heighten microglial responses and contribute to their dysfunction, creating a situation where their normal reparative mechanisms are no longer sufficient to maintain brain health. These ideas are discussed in the context of an evolving literature focused on microglial responses as possible targets for mitigation of late CNS radiation effects that represent potential risks for future exploration of deep space environments.
ISSN:2214-5524
DOI:10.1016/j.lssr.2022.08.002