Rat microgliaWIKIMEDIA, GRZEGORZ WICHERAs the brain matures, a group of resident immune cells called microglia crawl between the growing neurons and engulf invading microbes or damaged cells. They are also thought to pluck off some of the synapses that connect different neurons.
This destructive act is important for the developing brain. The microglia prune away weak or unwanted connections, allowing more productive ones to become stronger. Without this “synaptic pruning,” a team of researchers led by Cornelius Gross at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory has shown that mice grow up with weaker connections between different parts of their brains.
“This is one of the few robust features seen in people with autism: their brain regions don’t synchronize well,” said Gross. “We looked and found that these mice have what are typically thoughts to be autism-like behavioral features.” In other words, mice without microglia were more likely to show repetitive movements and to shy away from social contact.
The results, published today (February 3) in Nature Neuroscience, may ...
