Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a pleiotropic cytokine expressed by different cell types and exerting multiple biological functions. It has been shown that MIF may be involved in several disorders, including neurodegenerative disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson disease (PD), and Huntington disease (HD), that represent an unmet medical need. Therefore, further studies are needed to identify novel pathogenetic mechanisms that may translate into tailored therapeutic approaches so to improve patients' survival and quality of life. Here, we reviewed the preclinical and clinical studies investigating the role of MIF in ALS, PD, and HD. The emerging results suggest that MIF might play a dichotomic role in these disorders, exerting a protective action in ALS, a pathogenetic action in HD, and a yet undefined and debated role in PD. The better understanding of the role of MIF in these diseases could allow its use as a novel diagnostic and therapeutic tool for the monitoring and treatment of the patients and for eventual biomarker-driven therapeutic approaches.

The Dichotomic Role of Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor in Neurodegeneration / Basile, Maria Sofia; Battaglia, Giuseppe; Bruno, Valeria; Mangano, Katia; Fagone, Paolo; Petralia, Maria Cristina; Nicoletti, Ferdinando; Cavalli, Eugenio. - In: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES. - ISSN 1422-0067. - 21:8(2020), p. 3023. [10.3390/ijms21083023]

The Dichotomic Role of Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor in Neurodegeneration

Battaglia, Giuseppe;Bruno, Valeria;
2020

Abstract

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a pleiotropic cytokine expressed by different cell types and exerting multiple biological functions. It has been shown that MIF may be involved in several disorders, including neurodegenerative disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson disease (PD), and Huntington disease (HD), that represent an unmet medical need. Therefore, further studies are needed to identify novel pathogenetic mechanisms that may translate into tailored therapeutic approaches so to improve patients' survival and quality of life. Here, we reviewed the preclinical and clinical studies investigating the role of MIF in ALS, PD, and HD. The emerging results suggest that MIF might play a dichotomic role in these disorders, exerting a protective action in ALS, a pathogenetic action in HD, and a yet undefined and debated role in PD. The better understanding of the role of MIF in these diseases could allow its use as a novel diagnostic and therapeutic tool for the monitoring and treatment of the patients and for eventual biomarker-driven therapeutic approaches.
2020
Huntington disease; Parkinson disease; amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; macrophage migration inhibitory factor; neurodegeneration
01 Pubblicazione su rivista::01a Articolo in rivista
The Dichotomic Role of Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor in Neurodegeneration / Basile, Maria Sofia; Battaglia, Giuseppe; Bruno, Valeria; Mangano, Katia; Fagone, Paolo; Petralia, Maria Cristina; Nicoletti, Ferdinando; Cavalli, Eugenio. - In: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES. - ISSN 1422-0067. - 21:8(2020), p. 3023. [10.3390/ijms21083023]
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11573/1680236
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