CX3CL1 Regulation of Gliosis in Neuroinflammatory and Neuroprotective Processes

Abstract

Download PDFsettingsOrder Article Reprints Open AccessReview CX3CL1 Regulation of Gliosis in Neuroinflammatory and Neuroprotective Processes by Irene L. Gutiérrez,David Martín-HernándezORCID,Karina S. MacDowellORCID,Borja García-Bueno,Javier R. CasoORCID,Juan C. Leza andJosé L. M. Madrigal *ORCID Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, School of Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), Av. Complutense s/n, 28040, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Instituto de Investigación Neuroquímica (IUINQ-UCM), Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria Hospital 12 de Octubre (Imas12), 28040 Madrid, Spain * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(3), 959; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26030959 Submission received: 19 December 2024 / Revised: 22 January 2025 / Accepted: 23 January 2025 / Published: 23 January 2025 (This article belongs to the Special Issue Fractalkine (CX3CL1) and Its Chemoattractant and Adhesion Molecule Properties in Health and Disease) Downloadkeyboard_arrow_down Review Reports Versions Notes Article Views377

Abstract Among the different chemokines, C-X3-C motif chemokine ligand 1 or CX3CL1, also named fractalkine, is one of the most interesting due to its characteristics, including its unique structure, not shared by any other chemokine, and its ability to function both in a membrane-bound form and in a soluble form, among others. However, undoubtedly, its most relevant characteristic from the neuroscientific point of view is its role as a messenger used by neurons to communicate with microglia. The study of the interaction between both cell types and the key role that CX3CL1 seems to play has facilitated the identification of CX3CL1 as a crucial modulator of microglial activation and a promising target in the fight against neuroinflammation. As a result, numerous studies have contributed to elucidate the involvement of CX3CL1 and its specific receptor CCX3CR1 in the progression of different neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative processes, with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases being the most studied ones. However, the different animal and cellular models used to reproduce the pathological conditions to be analyzed, as well as the difficulties inherent to studies performed on human samples, have hindered the collection of compatible results in many cases. In this review, we summarize some of the most relevant data describing the alterations found for the CX3CL1/CX3CR1 signaling axis in different neurodegenerative conditions in which neuroinflammation is known to play a relevant role.