Abstract:

Hippocampal neurogenesis as a therapeutic target for neurological disorders: Mature granule cells are continuously differentiated from neural stem and progenitor cells and integrated into the preexisting neural system in the subgranular zone of the hippocampal dentate gyrus throughout life. Accumulating evidence indicates that these newborn granule cells are essential for the physiological functions of the hippocampus, such as memory formation, learning,regulation of emotions, and stress response. Alterations in hippocampal neurogenesis are observed in patients with cognitive and psychological diseases, such as epilepsy, ischemia, and traumatic brain injury (Yu et al., 2016). This suggests that hippocampal neurogenesis is a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of neurological disorders. To date, various secretory molecules have been identified as regulators of neurogenic processes, including neuronal proliferation, differentiation, and survival, such as morphogens,neurotrophic factors, neurotransmitters, transcription factors, and epigenetic modulators Canonical Wnts, which are a type of morphogen, are well-studied regulators of hippocampal neurogenesis. Canonical Wnt signals are transduced via the LRP  (low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein) 5/6 and Frizzled receptor complex, followed by the intracellular mediator, β-catenin (MacDonald et al., 2009). Alterations in the Wnt/β-catenin signaling leads to impairments in hippocampal development, and the dysregulation of neuronal proliferation and differentiation of dentate granule cell precursors.