Comparison of regenerative neurogenesis in response to CNS injury between adult zebrafish and mice

Abstract

The difference between adult zebrafish and mice in their regenerative capacity following central nervous system (CNS) injury is influenced by the permissiveness of the brain microenvironment aside from the intrinsic neurogenic potential of the cell population. In adult zebrafish, glia cells largely retain their radial characteristics and neurogenic capacity, and the zebrafish brain shows full recovery after traumatic brain injury (TBI) as well as spinal cord injury (SCI). Conversely, in mice, radial glia (RG) have largely differentiated into astrocytes. Excluding certain brain regions, following TBI, reactive astrocytes that show the potential to become neural stem cells (NSCs) in vitro remain strictly non-neurogenic in vivo due to the presence of inhibitory factors in the microenvironment. Combined with prolonged inflammation and gliosis, injury to the CNS eventually results in formation of a glial scar further impeding regeneration. However in rodents, suppression of neurogenesis may be a protection mechanism against possible detrimental side-effects of neurogenesis in the long term.