Specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs) are lipid mediators derived from poly-unsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) which have been demonstrated to play an important role in the inflammation environment, preventing an overreaction of the organism and promoting the resolution of inflammation. The aim of this work is to point out the current evidence on SPMs, focusing on their role in neuroinflammation and in major neurological diseases.
Reference | Type of Study | Animal Model | Pro-Resolving Mediator | Delivery (Or Measurement If the Study Was Non-Interventional) | Outcome |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Zuo et al., 2018 [25] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | RvD2 | intraperitoneal | ↓ infarction, inflammation, edema, and neurological dysfunction; compared with ω-3 fatty acid oral supplements, better rescue effect on cerebral infarction |
Dong et al., 2019 [26] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | RvD2 | Intravenous infusion of RvD2-loaded nanovesicles | ↓ inflammation; ↑ neurological function |
Fredman et al., 2016 [27] | Animal study | fat-fed Ldlr-/- mice | RvD1 | Immunoprecipitation injection | ↓ atherosclerosis |
Kotlęga et al., 2021 [28] | Human study | - | RvD1 | blood levels of endogenous pro-resolving mediators | Post-stroke blood levels of RvD1 correlated with a better cognitive performance |
Xian et al., 2016 [29] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | MaR1 | Intracerebroventricular | ↓infarct volume and neurological defects by inhibiting NF-kB p65 function |
Xian et al., 2019 [30] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | MaR1 | Intracerebroventricular | ↓ inflammation and mitochondrial damage via activation of SIRT1 signaling |
Vital et al., 2020 [31] | Animal study | Lipopolysaccharide and sickle transgenic mice models of thrombo-inflammation | AnxA1 mimetic peptide Ac2-26 | Intravenous | ↓ thrombo-inflammation via Fpr2/ALX receptor and ↓ platelet aggregation |
Gavins et al., 2007 [32] | Animal study | MCAO in wild-type or AnxA1−/− mice | AnxA1 mimetic peptide Ac2-26 | Intravenous | ↓ inflammation via receptors of the FPR family |
Xu et al., 2021 [33] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | AnxA1 mimetic peptide Ac2-26 | Intravenous | ↓ inflammation by regulating the FPR2/ALX-dependent AMPK-mTOR pathway |
Ding et al., 2020 [34] | Animal study | Collagenase-induced ICH mouse model | Recombinant human AnXA1 | Intracerebroventricular | ↓ inflammation via the FPR2/p38/COX-2 pathway |
Senchenkova et al., 2019 [35] | Animal study | MCAO in wild-type or AnxA1−/− mice | Whole protein AnXA1 | Intravenous | ↓ platelet aggregation by affecting integrin (αIIbβ3) activation |
Li et al., 2021 [36] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | LXA4 | Intracerebroventricular | ↓ proinflammatory cytokines and regulate microglial M1/M2 polarization via the Notch signaling pathway |
Wu et al., 2013 [37] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | LXA4 | Intracerebroventricular | ↓infarct volume and ↑ neurological function through Nrf2 upregulation |
Hawkins et al., 2014 [38] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | LXA4 analog BML-111 | Intravenous | ↓ infarct size, edema, BBB disruption, and hemorrhagic transformation |
Hawkins et al., 2017 [39] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | LXA4 analog BML-111 | Intravenous | ↓ infarct volume; and ↑ neurological function at 1 week. No reduction of infarct size or improvement of behavioral deficits 4 weeks after ischemic stroke |
Wu et al., 2010 [40] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | LXA4 ME | Intracerebroventricular | ↓ proinflammatory cytokines, neurological dysfunctions, infarction volume, and neuronal apoptosis |
Ye et al., 2010 [41] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | LXA4 ME | Intracerebroventricular | ↓ proinflammatory cytokines, neurological dysfunctions, infarction volume, and neuronal apoptosis |
Wu et al., 2012 [42] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | LXA4 ME | Intracerebroventricular | ↓ BBB dysfunction and MMP-9 expression; ↑ TIMP-1 expression |
Jin et al., 2014 [43] | Animal study | BCCAO | LXA4 ME | Intracerebroventricular | Amelioration of cognitive impairment via ↓oxidative injury and ↓neuronal apoptosis in the hippocampus with the activation of the ERK/Nrf2 signaling pathway |
Wang et al., 2021 [44] | Human study | - | LXA4, RvD1, RvD2, RvE1, MaR1 | blood levels of endogenous pro-resolving mediators | ↓ LXA4 in patients with post-stroke cognitive impairment |
Guo et al., 2016 [45] | Animal study | endovascular perforation model of SAH | Exogenous LXA4 | Intracerebroventricular | ↓ neuroinflammation by activating FPR2 and inhibiting p38 |
Liu et al., 2019 [46] | Animal study | endovascular perforation model of SAH | Recombinant LXA4 | Intracerebroventricular | ↓ endothelial dysfunction and neutrophil infiltration, possibly involving the LXA4/FPR2/ERK1/2 pathway |
Yao et al., 2013 [47] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | NPD1 | Intracerebroventricular | ↓ infarct volume and ↑ neurological scores through inhibition of calpain-mediated TRPC6 proteolysis and activation of CREB via the Ras/MEK/ERK pathway |
Eady et al., 2012 [48] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | NPD1 | Intravenous | ↓ infarct size in aged rats via activation of Akt and p70S6K pathways |
Belayev et al., 2017 [49] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | DHA (NPD1 precursor) | Intravenous | ↓ oxidative stress by upregulating ring finger protein 146 (Iduna) in neurons and astrocyte |
Zirpoli et al., 2021 [50] | Animal study | Unilateral cerebral hypoxia-ischemia injury mouse model | NPD1 | Intraperitoneal | ↓ ischemic core expansion, preserved mitochondrial structure and ↓ BAX translocation and activation |
Belayev et al., 2018 [51] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | NPD1 | Intracerebroventricular | ↑ neurogenesis and angiogenesis, BBB integrity, and long-term neurobehavioral recovery |
Bazan et al., 2012 [52] | Animal study | MCAO mouse model | AT-NPD1 | Intravenous | ↓ infarct volume and brain edema; ↑ neurobehavioral recovery |
Table 2.
Summary of in vivo studies on SPMs in neurological immune-mediated disorders.
Reference. |
Type of study |
Model |
Pro-resolving mediator |
Delivery (or measurement if the study was non-interventional) |
Outcome |
Paschalidis N et al., 2009[54 |
Table 3.
Summary of in vivo studies on SPMs in neurodegenerative diseases.
Reference |
Type of study |
model |
Pro-resolving mediator |
Delivery (or measurement if the study was non-interventional) |
Outcome |
|||||||
] |
||||||||||||
Do K V et al., 2022 [68] |
Animal study |
Human, non-interventional |
MOG34-55 -induced EAE in AnxA1 null mice compared to MOG34-55 -induced EAE in control mice |
Absence of AnxA1 expression |
Patients with AD, MCI, SCI |
RvD4 |
Measurement of disease activity in spinal cord; lymph-node cells (respectively, by isolation of T-cells and/or fixation with haematoxylin and eosin; and by test ELISA for Th1/Th17 cytokine profile) |
↓ signs of the disease in AnxA1 null mice compared to wild type mice ↓ infiltration of T cells in the spinal cord of AnxA1 null mice compared to wild type |
||||
CSF levels of RvD4 | Negative correlation to AD tangle biomarkers, and positive correlations to cognitive test scores |
Huitinga I et al., 1998 [55] |
||||||||||
Zhu M. et al., 2016 [69] |
Animal study |
EAE rats (MS mouse model) |
Human study |
Patients with AD | AnxA1 |
MaR1, NPD1, RvD5 |
Intracerebroventricular administration |
Postmortem tissue samples from the entorhinal cortex |
↓ neurological severity
|
|||
↓ concentration of pro-resolving mediators in the entorhinal cortex of AD patients as compared to age-matched controls, while levels of the pro-inflammatory prostaglandin D2 were higher in AD |
Poisson LM, 2015 [56] |
|||||||||||
Martinsen A. et al., 2019 [70] |
Animal study |
Animal study |
EAE rats (MS mouse model) |
APOE4 Female mice |
RvD1 |
Various SPMs |
Oral administration |
Brain postmortem tissue samples |
Attenuation of disease progression by suppressing autoreactive T cells and inducing an M2 phenotype of monocytes/macrophages and resident brain microglial cells |
|||
↓ SPMs in mice with the APOE4 genotype |
Derada Troletti C et al., 2021 [57] |
Animal study |
||||||||||
Emre C. et al., 2020 [71] | EAE rats (MS mouse model) |
Human study |
Patients with AD | LXA4 |
SPMs receptors |
Intraperitoneal injection |
Improvement of EAE clinical symptoms and inhibit CD4+ and CD8+ T cell infiltration into the CNS |
|||||
Brain postmortem tissue samples | ↑ SPMs receptors |
Derada Troletti C et al., 2021 [57] |
||||||||||
Emre C, Do K V. et al., 2021 [67 |
In vivo and in vitro study |
] |
Animal study |
Human T cells from healthy donors and patients with relapsing-remitting MS |
APP KI mouse model of AD |
|
LXA4 |
Measurement of T-cell functions |
LMs profile |
Brain postmortem tissue samples |
↓ encephalitogenic Th1 and Th17 effector functions |
|
↑ microglia proliferation starting from a young age in the App KI mice, while ↓ astrocyte numbers in older ages | Brain lipidome appears to be modified preferentially during aging as compared to amyloid pathology, as the oldest age group was the one with the greatest increase in LMs, despite an early onset of Aβ pathology |
Sánchez-Fernández A et al., 2022 [58] |
Animal study |
|||||||||
Emre C, Arroyo-García et al., 2022 [72] | EAE rats (MS mouse model) |
Animal study |
Murine model of AD | MaR1 |
RvE1, RvD1, RvD2, MaR1 and NPD1 |
Intraperitoneal injection |
Suppression of various pro-inflammatory cytokines, |
Intranasal |
↓ number of Th1 cells ↑ of Tregs polarization of macrophages towards an anti-inflammatory phenotype |
|||
Amelioration of memory deficits; restoration of Gamma oscillation deficits; ↓ microglial activation |
Prüss H et al., 2013 [59] |
|||||||||||
Kantarci A. et al., 2017 [20] |
Human study |
Animal study | MS patients |
Murine model of AD |
RvD1 NDP1 |
RvE1 and LXA4 | CSF levels |
Intraperitoneal |
↑ of RvD1 Only detection of NDP1 |
|||
↑ RvE1, LXA4, and RvD2 in the hippocampus; reversing of the inflammatory process, | ↓ neuroinflammation |
Kooij G et al., 2020 [60] | ||||||||||
Wu J. et al., 2011 [73] |
|
Human study |
NMOSD patients |
Animal study |
Murine model of AD | RvD1 LTB4
|
CSF levels |
RvD1 ↓ LTB4 ↑ |
||||
Luo B et al., 2016 [61] |
Animal study |
EAN (experimental autoimmune neuritis) model |
RvD1 |
Intraperitoneal injection |
Macrophage phagocytosis of apoptotic T cells in PNS, ↑ TGFβ by macrophages, ↑ local Treg cell counts, and promotion of inflammation resolution and disease recovery |
* AnXA1: Annexin A1; AT-NPD1: aspirin-triggered NPD1; BCCAO: bilateral common carotid artery occlusion; DHA: docosahexaenoic acid; EAE: Experimental Autoimmune Encephalitis; EAN: Experimental Autoimmune Neuritis; FPR: formyl-peptide receptor; LXA4: Lipoxin A4; LXA4 ME: Lipoxin A4 Methyl Ester; LTB4: Leukotriene B4; MaR1: Maresin1; NPD1: Neuroprotectin D1; PNS: peripheral nervous system; RvD1: Resolvin D1.
LXA4 | |||||
Intracerebroventricular | |||||
Inhibiting the inflammatory response induced by β-amyloid in the cortex and hippocampus (in particular, production of IL-1b and TNFa) | |||||
Serhan CN., 2005 [74] |
Animal study |
Murine model of AD |
ATL |
Subcutaneous
|
↓ NF-kB activation and levels of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines; creating an anti-inflammatory cerebral milieu, resulting in the recruitment of microglia in an alternative phenotype |
Medeiros R. et al., 2013 [75]
|
Animal study |
Murine model of AD |
ATL |
Subcutaneous |
↓ phosphorylated-tau (p-tau) |
Yin P. et al., 2019 [76]
|
Animal study |
Murine model of AD |
MaR1 |
Intracerebroventricular |
Improving cognitive decline of experimental mice: attenuating microglial activation, ↓ the pro-inflammatory cytokines in favor of anti-inflammatory ones, and ↑ the levels of proteins related to survival pathway including PI3K/AKT, ERK; ↓ levels of proteins associated with inflammation, autophagy, and apoptosis pathways, such as p38, mTOR and caspase 3 |
Schröder N et al., 2020 [77] |
Animal study |
Murine model of AD |
Ac2-26 |
Intraperitoneal injection |
No beneficial effect |
Park JC et al., 2017 [78] |
In vitro and in vivo (animal study) |
Aβ-42 treated murine brain endothelial cell line bEnd.3; Murine model of AD |
Human recombinant ANXA1; ANXA1 |
Administration of human recombinant ANXA1 in Aβ-42 treated murine brain endothelial cell line bEnd.3; ANXA1 levels on blood of murine model of AD |
rescuing β-amyloid 1–42 -induced BBB disruption via inhibition of RhoA-ROCK signaling pathway in brain endothelial cell line bEnd.3; ↓ ANXA1 in a murine model of AD |
Ries M. et al., 2021 [79] |
Animal study |
Murine model of AD |
Human recombinant AnxA1 |
Intravenous injection |
↓ β-amyloid load and p-tau build-up in 5xFAD mice and Tau-P301L mice; prolonged treatment reduced the memory deficits and increased synaptic density in young 5xFAD mice |
Tian Y. et al., 2015 [80] |
Animal study |
Rat model of PD |
RvD2 |
Intrathecal injection on substantia nigra pars compacta |
recovering neural injury by suppressing inflammatory mediator expression |
Krashia P. et al., 2019 [81] |
Animal study |
Rats overexpressing human α-synuclein (Syn) |
RvD1 |
Chronic intraperitoneal injection |
preventing central and peripheral inflammation, as well as neuronal dysfunction and motor deficits |
* AD: Alzheimer Disease; Ac2-26: annexin/lipocortin 1-mimetic peptide; ATL: Aspirin-triggered LXA4; LXA4: Lipoxin A4; LMs: Lipid Mediators; MaR1: Maresin1; MCI: Mild cognitive impairment; N-AS: N-acetyl sphingosine; n3-PUFAs: omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids; NPD1: Neuroprotectin D1; PD: Parkinson Disease; RvD1: Resolvin D1; RvD4: Resolvin D4; RvD5: Resolvin D5; RvE1: Resolvin E1; SCI: Subjective cognitive impairment.