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Science (New York, N.Y.)
Published

C1q and immunoglobulins mediate activity-dependent synapse loss in the adult brain

Authors

Gerard Crowley, Minjung Kim, Nathanael O'Neill, Emir Turkes, Fateme Ghasemi, Luca Giudice, Sebastiaan De Schepper, Benjy J Y Tan, Benito Maffei, Laís S S Ferreira, Julie Rebejac, Javier Rueda-Carrasco, Margarita Toneva, John Christian Fajardo, Judy Z Ge, Zhengyue Grace Yang, Paula Korhonen, Phillip Muckett, Damaris Bennett, Camille Paoletti, Tammie T M Sow, David A Posner, Annerieke Sierksma, Dimitra Sokolova, Viktoras Konstantellos, Leen Ali, Kiavash Movahedi, Andrew F MacAskill, Victor L J Tybulewicz, Tarja Malm, Gabriele Lignani, Menna R Clatworthy, Soyon Hong

Abstract

Science. 2026 Jul 9;393(6807):eadv1219. doi: 10.1126/science.adv1219. Epub 2026 Jul 9.

ABSTRACT

Complement component 1q (C1q), the initiator of the classical complement cascade, mediates synaptic elimination in development and disease, yet the triggers for its deposition on synapses remain unclear. Using in vivo chemogenetics, we demonstrate that neuronal hyperactivity induces region-specific, C1q-dependent synapse loss in the adult hippocampus. Suppressing perforant pathway hyperactivity in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease reduced local amyloid-β amounts and C1q deposition and partially rescued synapse loss. Combining spatial transcriptomics, live cell tracking, and super-resolution microscopy, we identified association of antibody-secreting B-lineage cells in the adult hippocampus with activity-dependent, C1q-mediated synapse loss under physiological conditions. Together, these findings link neuronal hyperactivity to C1q-mediated synapse loss in the adult brain and implicate immunoglobulins as players in this process.

PMID:42424464 | DOI:10.1126/science.adv1219

UK DRI Authors

Dr Soyon Hong

Group Leader

Dissecting pathways by which microglia contribute to region-specific synapse dysfunction in neurodegeneration

Dr Soyon Hong