Microglial glutaminase 1 deficiency mitigates neuroinflammation associated depression

Glutaminase 1 (GLS1) has recently been reported to be expressed in microglia and plays a crucial role in neu-roinflamation. Significantly increased level of GLS1 mRNA expression together with neuroinflammation pathway were observed in postmortem prefrontal cortex from depressed patients. To find out the function of microglial GLS1 in depression and neuroinflammation, we generated transgenic mice (GLS1 cKO), postnatally losing GLS1 in microglia, to detect changes in the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced depression model. LPS-induced anxiety/ depression-like behavior was attenuated in GLS1 cKO mice, paralleled by a significant reduction in pro-inflammatory cytokines and an abnormal microglia morphological phenotype in the prefrontal cortex. Reduced neuroinflammation by GLS1 deficient microglia was a result of less reactive astrocytes, as GLS1 defi-ciency enhanced miR-666-3p and miR-7115-3p levels in extracellular vesicles released from microglia, thus suppressing astrocyte activation via inhibiting Serpina3n expression. Together, our data reveal a novel mecha-nism of GLS1 in neuroinflammation and targeting GLS1 in microglia may be a novel strategy to alleviate neuroinflammation-related depression and other disease.

Automated summary

Glutaminase 1 (GLS1) has been found to play a crucial role in neuroinflammation, particularly in depression. By targeting GLS1 in microglia, it is possible to alleviate neuroinflammation and depression-like behaviors.