Microglia and motor neurons during disease progression in the SOD1G93A mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: Changes in arginase1 and inducible nitric oxide synthase

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease affecting the motor system. Although the etiology of the disease is not fully understood, microglial activation and neuroinflammation are thought to play a role in disease progression.

Methods: We examined the immunohistochemical expression of two markers of microglial phenotype, the arginine-metabolizing enzymes inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and arginase1 (Arg1), in the spinal cord of a mouse model carrying an ALS-linked mutant human superoxide dismutase transgene (SOD1^G93A) and in non-transgenic wild-type (WT) mice. Immunolabeling for iNOS and Arg1 was evaluated throughout disease progression (6 to 25 weeks), and correlated with body weight, stride pattern, wire hang duration and ubiquitin pathology. For microglia and motor neuron counts at each time point, SOD1^G93A and WT animals were compared using an independent samples t-test. A Welch t-test correction was applied if Levene’s test showed that the variance in WT and SOD1^G93A measurements was substantially different.

Results: Disease onset, measured as the earliest change in functional parameters compared to non-transgenic WT mice, occurred at 14 weeks of age in SOD1^G93A mice. The ventral horn of the SOD1^G93A spinal cord contained more microglia than WT from 14 weeks onwards. In SOD1^G93A mice, Arg1-positive and iNOS-positive microglia increased 18-fold and 7-fold, respectively, between 10 and 25 weeks of age (endpoint) in the lumbar spinal cord, while no increase was observed in WT mice. An increasing trend of Arg1- and iNOS-expressing microglia was observed in the cervical spinal cords of SOD1^G93A mice. Additionally, Arg1-negative motor neurons appeared to selectively decline in the spinal cord of SOD1^G93A mice, suggesting that Arg1 may have a neuroprotective function.

Conclusions: This study suggests that the increase in spinal cord microglia occurs around and after disease onset and is preceded by cellular pathology. The results show that Arg1 and iNOS, thought to have opposing inflammatory properties, are upregulated in microglia during disease progression and that Arg1 in motor neurons may confer protection from disease processes. Further understanding of the neuroinflammatory response, and the Arg1/iNOS balance in motor neurons, may provide suitable therapeutic targets for ALS.