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Title: Pathogenic implications of distinct patterns of iron and zinc in chronic MS lesions

Journal Article · · Acta Neuropathologica
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [4];  [4];  [5];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [5];  [6];  [6];  [4];  [4];  [4]
  1. Univ. of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon (Canada)
  2. Medical Univ. Vienna, Vienna (Austria)
  3. SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States)
  4. Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN (United States)
  5. Univ. of Gottingen, Gottingen (Germany)
  6. Medical Univ. of Vienna, Vienna (Austria)

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS) in which oligodendrocytes, the CNS cells that stain most robustly for iron and myelin are the targets of injury. Metals are essential for normal CNS functioning, and metal imbalances have been linked to demyelination and neurodegeneration. Using a multidisciplinary approach involving synchrotron techniques, iron histochemistry and immunohistochemistry, we compared the distribution and quantification of iron and zinc in MS lesions to the surrounding normal appearing and periplaque white matter, and assessed the involvement of these metals in MS lesion pathogenesis. We found that the distribution of iron and zinc is heterogeneous in MS plaques, and with few remarkable exceptions they do not accumulate in chronic MS lesions. We show that brain iron tends to decrease with increasing age and disease duration of MS patients; reactive astrocytes organized in large astrogliotic areas in a subset of smoldering and inactive plaques accumulate iron and safely store it in ferritin; a subset of smoldering lesions do not contain a rim of iron-loaded macrophages/microglia; and the iron content of shadow plaques varies with the stage of remyelination. Zinc in MS lesions was generally decreased, paralleling myelin loss. Iron accumulates concentrically in a subset of chronic inactive lesions suggesting that not all iron rims around MS lesions equate with smoldering plaques. Furthermore, upon degeneration of iron-loaded microglia/macrophages, astrocytes may form an additional protective barrier that may prevent iron-induced oxidative damage.

Research Organization:
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), High Energy Physics (HEP)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-76SF00515
OSTI ID:
1372893
Journal Information:
Acta Neuropathologica, Vol. 134, Issue 1; ISSN 0001-6322
Publisher:
SpringerCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 75 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Chronic white matter lesion activity predicts clinical progression in primary progressive multiple sclerosis journal August 2019
Multiplexed imaging of immune cells in staged multiple sclerosis lesions by mass cytometry posted_content May 2019
Iron related changes in MS lesions and their validity to characterize MS lesion types and dynamics with Ultra‐high field magnetic resonance imaging journal December 2017
Linking Cigarette Smoking/Tobacco Exposure and Cluster Headache: A Pathogenesis Theory journal July 2018
Slowly expanding/evolving lesions as a magnetic resonance imaging marker of chronic active multiple sclerosis lesions journal December 2018
Longitudinal study of multiple sclerosis lesions using ultra-high field (7T) multiparametric MR imaging journal September 2018
Evaluation of the ‘ring sign’ and the ‘core sign’ as a magnetic resonance imaging marker of disease activity and progression in clinically isolated syndrome and early multiple sclerosis text January 2020
Identification of Chronic Active Multiple Sclerosis Lesions on 3T MRI journal May 2018
Significance and In Vivo Detection of Iron-Laden Microglia in White Matter Multiple Sclerosis Lesions journal February 2018
Zinc Signals and Immunity journal October 2017
The Intracellular Free Zinc Level Is Vital for Treg Function and a Feasible Tool to Discriminate between Treg and Activated Th Cells journal November 2018
Zinc Status and Autoimmunity: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis journal January 2018
New Insights on the Nutrition Status and Antioxidant Capacity in Multiple Sclerosis Patients journal February 2019
Zinc as a Gatekeeper of Immune Function journal November 2017
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Evaluation of the ‘ring sign’ and the ‘core sign’ as a magnetic resonance imaging marker of disease activity and progression in clinically isolated syndrome and early multiple sclerosis journal January 2020
Zinc Signals and Immunity text January 2017
Zinc as a Gatekeeper of Immune Function text January 2017
The Intracellular Free Zinc Level Is Vital for Treg Function and a Feasible Tool to Discriminate between Treg and Activated Th Cells text January 2018
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