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miR-146a is a Pleiotropic Regulator of Motor Neuron Degeneration

Galloway, D. A.; Patterson, H. L.; Hoye, M. L.; Shen, T.; Shabsovich, M.; Schoch, K. M.; Ly, C. V.; Miller, T. M.

2025-09-09 neuroscience
10.1101/2025.09.04.674013 bioRxiv
Show abstract

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease affecting motor neurons. Here, we have profiled motor neuron microRNAs (miRNAs) during motor neuron degeneration in vivo to gain a better understanding of ALS pathophysiology. We demonstrate that one miRNA, miR-146a, is downregulated in diseased motor neurons despite upregulation in bulk tissue. Genetic deletion of miR-146a significantly extended survival in SOD1G93A mice with heterozygous animals demonstrating the largest benefit. A corresponding reduction in spinal cord gliosis but not motor neuron loss was observed. Finally, we observed that a proportion of miR-146a knockout animals develop spontaneous paralysis, motor neuron loss and chronic neuroinflammation with advanced age. Together these findings demonstrate that a single miRNA influences multiple aspects of motor neuron disease and highlights the complex role for neuroinflammation in ALS pathogenesis.

Published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (predicted rank #2) · training set

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