SENP3-mediated deSUMOylation of c-Jun facilitates microglia-induced neuroinflammation after cerebral ischemia and reperfusion injury

Qian Xia; Meng Mao; Gaofeng Zhan; Zhenzhao Luo; Yin Zhao; Xing Li

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2023.106953

SENP3-mediated deSUMOylation of c-Jun facilitates microglia-induced neuroinflammation after cerebral ischemia and reperfusion injury

iScience. 2023 May 25;26(6):106953. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.106953. eCollection 2023 Jun 16.

Authors

Qian Xia¹, Meng Mao², Gaofeng Zhan¹, Zhenzhao Luo³, Yin Zhao⁴, Xing Li¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Anesthesiology, Hubei Key Laboratory of Geriatric Anesthesia and Perioperative Brain Health, and Wuhan Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Anesthesia, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, China.
² Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Zhengzhou Central Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450007, China.
³ Department of Medical Laboratory, The Central Hospital of Wuhan, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, China.
⁴ Department of Ophthalmology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, China.

Abstract

Recent evidences have implicated that SENP3 is a deSUMOylase which possesses neuronal damage effects in cerebral ischemia. However, its role in microglia remains poorly understood. Here, we found that SENP3 was upregulated in the peri-infarct areas of mice following ischemic stroke. Furthermore, knockdown of SENP3 significantly inhibits the expression of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines in microglial cells. Mechanistically, SENP3 can bind and then mediated the deSUMOylation of c-Jun, which activated its transcriptional activity, ultimately followed by the activation of MAPK/AP-1 signaling pathway. In addition, microglia-specific SENP3 knockdown alleviated ischemia-induced neuronal damage, and markedly diminished infract volume, ameliorated sensorimotor and cognitive function in animals subjected to ischemic stroke. These results indicated SENP3 functions as a novel regulator of microglia-induced neuroinflammation by activating the MAPK/AP-1 signaling pathway via mediating the deSUMOylation of c-Jun. Interventions of SENP3 expression or its interaction with c-Jun would be a new and promising therapeutic strategy for ischemic stroke.

Keywords: Cellular neuroscience; Molecular biology; Neurology.