Tech · 15 d ago
Syed07 · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Alcohol drives the brain's immune cells to break down its supporting tissue, a mouse study finds
The cells in question
microglia
Microglia are immune cells that watch over the brain, clear dead cells and prune connections between neurons.
In mice given heavy doses of alcohol, microglia changed shape within about an hour, then began to engulf and digest the extracellular matrix that holds brain cells in place.
Why it matters
Mice without a protein called MyD88 in their microglia showed less neuron damage and less sedation after alcohol, which makes the protein a possible target for treatment.
“By following microglia in real time, we were able to see that they aren't simply responding to damage. They drive the detrimental changes alcohol causes in the brain.”
— Dimitrios Davalos, Cleveland Clinic
What we know
- Matrix damage in mice given alcohol
- Similar signs in six human brains
Not yet
- Whether the same process drives damage in people
Brain tissue from six people with alcohol use disorder showed similar signs of matrix damage, though the main findings come from mice.
