A perfect living ‘laboratory’ that could provide new answers for
Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. It is the invertebrate botryllus schlosseri who lives in the Venetian Lagoon and is the protagonist of the study published in ‘Brain communications’, a joint work by the University of Padua and the University of Milan on the specificities of the brain and the life cycle of this small marine animal which seems to open new frontiers to understand the mechanisms underlying Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s
“Neurodegenerative diseases and brain aging represent an important medical challenge also considering the increase in average lifespan and the need for healthy aging – explains Alberto Priori, professor of Neurology of the Department of Health Sciences at the University of Milan studies and research coordinator – A significant critical issue in the study of these phenomena is the development of simple and repeatable biological models. Botrylus represents a decisive innovation in this sense because it summarizes the aging and degeneration of its neurons in the gyrus of a few days with a genetic homogeneity that allows, at low cost, the evaluation of different environmental, pharmacological and physical stimuli not only from a genetic but also a metabolic point of view. I believe – he adds – that studies on botrylil will be able to provide us with valuable information on mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, just to mention the best known ones”.
“Botrylus is truly special because it is an animal that forms colonies in which the adult animals, which arrange themselves in a radial pattern like small flowers, cyclically degenerate simultaneously. In the laboratory, this happens every week and gives us the opportunity to repeatedly study the degeneration of the brain – says Lucia Manni, department of Biology, University of Padua, research coordinator – Furthermore, while adults degenerate, there are new individuals who undergo to replace, therefore, alongside the brains that degenerate, there are others (the buds) that develop at the same time. Growing buds are not “contaminated” by the degeneration of their parents, even if they share the same circulatory system. This gives us the opportunity to also study the mechanisms that can protect developing brains from neurodegeneration. If we then consider that colonies can live in the Lagoon for a couple of years, we can also compare neurodegeneration in young and old colonies.”
The hypothesis that neurodegeneration in botryllis is similar to the proteinopathies of human neurodegenerative diseases
Botrylus offers a unique research opportunity thanks to the particularity of its life cycle. “It reproduces both sexually (giving rise to a swimming tadpole-shaped larva) and asexually (that is, the individuals of the colony generate genetically identical buds thanks to a budding process). Precisely thanks to the appearance of new buds – he explains work – and at the simultaneous death of old individuals, in botryli we find recurring life phases in which the colonies rejuvenate weekly. Also for this reason this invertebrate is in itself a ‘rapid aging model’ which allows us to study neurodegeneration on a regular basis. weekly and in the same genetic environment, i.e. in identical individuals such as twins”.
Another peculiarity is that the botrylis shows simple behavioral responses that depend on the activation of different receptors, suggesting that different sensorimotor circuits exist just like in humans and other mammals. These simple behaviors allow us to easily quantify the abilities of degenerating individuals. “Moreover, in this invertebrate, the degenerating neurons present morphological characteristics and causes of cell death just as occurs in human neurodegenerative diseases derived from proteinopathies (caused, for example, by a misfolding of proteins). Amyloidogenesis, or the formation of extracellular protein deposits which causes neuronal death in Alzheimer’s disease, is a physiologically active process also in botryllis. The hypothesis that neurodegeneration in botryllis is similar to the proteinopathies of human neurodegenerative diseases derives from the fact that, in the same colony, they can coexist. development of new neurons in the buds and the degeneration of old neurons in adults,” the researchers reflect.
“Very significant is the fact that this colonial invertebrate expresses a high number of genes that code for proteins involved in human neurodegenerative diseases – underlines Chiara Anselmi, Department of Biology, University of Padua, first author – These genes are expressed differently in the different phases of the life of the botrylis and are associated with a worsening of the ability to respond to external stimuli and a decrease in the number of neurons as the animal approaches the degeneration phase”.
Botryllus schlosseri may represent a new, fascinating model of development and regeneration
““The present study opens up two important scenarios. The first is aimed at a better understanding of what happens, from the early stages of the disease, in human neurodegeneration, for example in Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s disease. The second, perhaps even more fascinating, it is linked to the possibility of investigating the effect of non-invasive neurostimulation methods such as neuroprotective therapy, i.e. capable of modifying the course of the disease from its early stages, a characteristic which would be unique compared to all other therapies pharmacological and otherwise, present at the moment and in fact merely symptomatic”, concludes Tommaso Bocci, Neurology researcher at the Department of Health Sciences of the University of Milan and first author.
“Based on these findings, Botryllus schlosseri may represent a fascinating new model of development and regeneration, with the potential to reveal the mechanisms of human disorders, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. This could lead to the identification of new targets pharmacological and the development of innovative non-pharmacological strategies and – given the short life cycle of this simple and small animal – in a relatively short time”, the researchers comment.
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