Tracking tau and cellular responses in human iPSC-microglia: from uptake to seedable secretion, including in extracellular vesicles.

INTRODUCTION

Microglia have been implicated in the templated spread of tau aggregates in tauopathies through mouse studies. However, it is unclear whether these findings translate to human disease.

METHODS

We challenged human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived microglia-like-cells (iMGL) with monomeric and fibrillar recombinant tau and tau purified from Alzheimer's patient brains, examining in detail the uptake, processing, release, and seeding of tau by microglia.

RESULTS

iMGL take up tau via lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP)1 and heparan sulfate proteoglycans, with leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 affecting LRP1 trafficking. Monomeric tau is digested effectively with minimal effects on iMGL, but recombinant or brain-derived tau fibrils induce chemokine/interferon response subtypes, alongside downregulation of homeostatic genes. Fibrillar tau is degradation-resistant, can escape into the cytoplasm, and becomes phosphorylated on two specific residues. iMGL release partially digested fibrillar tau, including in extracellular vesicles, visualized by cryo-electron microscopy, that seed aggregation in neurons.

DISCUSSION: Our study reveals new insights into human microglial responses to tau, highlighting opportunities to limit pathogenic tau spread.