Abstract
Microglia are dynamic cells whose extensive interactions with neurons and glia during development allow them to regulate neuronal development and function. The microglial P2Y12 receptor is crucial for microglial responsiveness to extracellular ATP and mediates numerous microglial functions, including ATP-dependent directional motility, microglia-neuron interactions, and experience-dependent synaptic plasticity. However, little is known about the downstream signaling effectors that mediate these diverse actions of P2Y12. Phosphoinositide-3-kinase γ (PI3Kγ), a lipid kinase activated downstream of Gi-protein-coupled receptors such as P2Y12, could translate localized extracellular ATP signals into directed microglial action and serve as a broad effector of P2Y12-dependent signaling. Here, we used pharmacological and genetic methods to manipulate P2Y12 and PI3Kγ signaling to determine whether inhibiting PI3Kγ phenocopied the loss of P2Y12 signaling in mouse microglia. While pan-inhibition of all PI3K activity substantially affected P2Y12-dependent microglial responses, our results suggest that PI3Kγ specifically is only a minor part of the P2Y12 signaling pathway. PI3Kγ was not required to maintain homeostatic microglial morphology or their dynamic surveillance in vivo. Further, PI3Kγ was not strictly required for P2Y12-dependent microglial responses ex vivo or in vivo, although we did observe subtle deficits in the recruitment of microglial process toward sources of ATP. Finally, PI3Kγ was not required for ocular dominance plasticity, a P2Y12-dependent form of experience-dependent synaptic plasticity that occurs in the developing visual cortex. Overall, our results demonstrate that PI3Kγ is not the major mediator of P2Y12 function in microglia, but may have a role in amplifying or fine-tuning the chemotactic response.
Footnotes
The authors declare no competing financial interests.
This work was supported by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Grant F30 MH120974 (to B.S.W), HHS NIH National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Grants R01 NS114480 and R21 NS099973 (to A.K.M), and the National Science Foundation Grant 1557971 (to A.K.M.).
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