Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37989592›Full record

ArticleThe Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience2024

Microglial Refinement of A-Fiber Projections in the Postnatal Spinal Cord Dorsal Horn Is Required for Normal Maturation of Dynamic Touch.

Yajing Xu, Stephanie C Koch, Alexander Chamessian, Qianru He, Mayya Sundukova, Paul Heppenstall, RuRong Ji, Maria Fitzgerald, Simon Beggs

Open access · hybridAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
1.6field-weighted citation impact, top 17% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Glial cells in neuropathic pain.Physiological reviews · 2026
    Review
  2. Article
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Spinal Cord Microglia in the Development of Touch.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2024
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 4 institutions in 4 countries.

Yajing XuNeuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, UCL, London, WC1E 6BT United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0003-3782-7194
Stephanie C KochNeuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, UCL, London, WC1E 6BT United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0002-7131-4141
Alexander ChamessianDuke University School of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27710.
Qianru HeDuke University School of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27710.
Mayya SundukovaSISSA (International School for Advanced Studies), 34136 Trieste, Italy.
Paul HeppenstallSISSA (International School for Advanced Studies), 34136 Trieste, Italy.
RuRong JiDuke University School of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27710.ORCID 0000-0002-9355-3688
Maria FitzgeraldNeuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, UCL, London, WC1E 6BT United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0003-4188-0123
Simon BeggsNeuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, UCL, London, WC1E 6BT United Kingdom s.beggs@ucl.ac.uk.ORCID 0000-0002-1582-8391
Duke University · USUniversity College London · GBScuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati · ITWellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging · GB

Funding

Medical Scientist Training Program Training GrantT32GM145449 · NIGMS · DUKE UNIVERSITY · PI Christopher D Kontos · 2022 to 2026
$6.6M
NIGMS NIH HHS T32 GM145449Wellcome Trust
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Sensory systems are shaped in postnatal life by the refinement of synaptic connectivity. In the dorsal horn of the spinal cord, somatosensory circuits undergo postnatal activity-dependent reorganization, including the refinement of primary afferent A-fiber terminals from superficial to deeper spinal dorsal horn laminae which is accompanied by decreases in cutaneous sensitivity. Here, we show in the mouse that microglia, the resident immune cells in the CNS, phagocytose A-fiber terminals in superficial laminae in the first weeks of life. Genetic perturbation of microglial engulfment during the initial postnatal period in either sex prevents the normal process of A-fiber refinement and elimination, resulting in an altered sensitivity of dorsal horn cells to dynamic tactile cutaneous stimulation, and behavioral hypersensitivity to dynamic touch. Thus, functional microglia are necessary for the normal postnatal development of dorsal horn sensory circuits. In the absence of microglial engulfment, superfluous A-fiber projections remain in the dorsal horn, and the balance of sensory connectivity is disrupted, leading to lifelong hypersensitivity to dynamic touch.

Indexed as

TouchTouch PerceptionAnimalsMiceMicrogliaNerve Fibers, MyelinatedPosterior Horn CellsSpinal CordSpinal Cord Dorsal Horndevelopmentmicrogliapostnatalsomatosensoryspinaltouch

Identifiers

PMID37989592
PMCPMC10860632
OpenAlexW4388857236

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.