TLR4 signal ablation attenuated neurological deficits by regulating microglial M1/M2 phenotype after traumatic brain injury in mice

Abstract

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) initiates inflammatory responses that result in an enduring cascade of secondary neuronal loss and behavioural impairment. Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), predominantly expressed by microglia, recognizes damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) and regulates inflammatory processes. Interestingly, the switch of microglial M1/M2 phenotypes after TBI is highly important regarding damage and restoration of neurological function. Therefore, we investigated the role and mechanisms of the TLR4 signalling pathway in regulating microglial M1/M2 phenotypes. Using a controlled cortical impact (CCI) model, we found that TLR4 knockout (KO) mice exhibited decreased infarct volumes and improved outcomes in behavioural tests. In addition, mice lacking TLR4 had higher expression of M2 phenotype biomarkers but lower expression of M1 phenotype biomarkers. Compared with microglia derived from wild-type (WT) mice, increased expression of M2 phenotype biomarkers and decreased expression of M1 phenotype biomarkers were also noted in primary cultures of microglia from TLR4 KO mice. In TLR4 KO mice, the expression levels of downstream signalling molecules of TLR4, such as active Rac-1 and phospho-AKT, were higher, while MyD88 and phospho-NF-κB p65 expression levels were lower than in WT mice. Our results demonstrate that the absence of TLR4 induces microglial polarization toward the M2 phenotype and promotes microglial migration and, in turn, alleviates the development of neuroinflammation, which indicates potential neuroprotective effects in the TBI mouse model. Furthermore, up-regulation of IL-4 expression in TLR4 KO mice could contribute to anti-inflammatory functions and promote microglial polarization toward the M2 phenotype, which might be mediated by active Rac-1 expression. Taken together, TLR4 deficiency contributes to regulating microglia to switch to the M2 phenotype, which ameliorates neurological impairment after TBI.