Low density lipoprotein-receptor related protein 1 is differentially expressed by neuronal and glial populations in the developing and mature mouse central nervous system

The low density lipoprotein-receptor related protein 1 (LRP1) is a large endocytic cell surface receptor that is known to interact with a variety of ligands, intracellular adaptor proteins and other cell surface receptors to regulate cellular behaviours ranging from proliferation to cell fate specification, migration, axon guidance, and lipid metabolism. A number of studies have demonstrated that LRP1 is expressed in the brain, yet it is unclear which central nervous system cell types express LRP1 during development and in adulthood. Herein we undertake a detailed study of LRP1 expression within the mouse brain and spinal cord, examining a number of developmental stages ranging from embryonic day 13.5 to postnatal day 60. We report that LRP1 expression in the brain peaks during postnatal development. On a cellular level, LRP1 is expressed by radial glia, neuroblasts, microglia, oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs), astrocytes and neurons, with the exception of parvalbumin+ interneurons in the cortex. Most cell populations exhibit stable expression of LRP1 throughout development; however, the proportion of OPCs that express LRP1 increases significantly from ~69% at E15.5 to ~99% in adulthood. We also report that LRP1 expression is rapidly lost as OPCs differentiate, and is absent from all oligodendrocytes, including newborn oligodendrocytes. While LRP1 function has been primarily examined in mature neurons, these expression data suggest it plays a more critical role in glial cell regulation-where expression levels are much higher.