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Author Spotlight: Investigating the Complex Immune Response Following Brain Ischemia

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Published on: July 26, 2024

A head start: Bone channels shape meningeal immunity.

Jasmin Herz¹, Jonathan Kipnis¹

¹Brain Immunology and Glia (BIG) Center, Department of Pathology and Immunology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.

|January 14, 2026

Summary

Immune cells travel from skull marrow to the brain’s protective layers via bone channels. These channels form early in life and can change, influencing immune system access to the brain over time.

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Area of Science:

Neuroimmunology
Developmental Biology
Craniofacial Biology

Background:

Immune cells migrate from the skull marrow to the meninges through specific bone channels.
The skull's role in regulating immune cell traffic to the central nervous system is not fully understood.
Understanding this pathway is crucial for neuroimmune defense.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the developmental origins and plasticity of skull bone channels.
To determine how these channels influence immune cell access to the meninges.
To establish the skull as a potential developmental checkpoint for neuroimmune regulation.

Main Methods:

Utilized neonatal mouse models to study channel formation.
Employed imaging techniques to visualize immune cell trafficking.
Analyzed channel remodeling and its impact on immune cell infiltration.

Main Results:

Demonstrated that skull bone channels form during the neonatal period.
Showed that these channels are plastic and can be remodeled.
Established a link between channel structure and immune cell access to the brain borders.

Conclusions:

The skull acts as a critical developmental checkpoint for neuroimmune defense.
Skull bone channels regulate immune cell entry into the meninges.
The developmental trajectory of these channels may influence lifelong neuroimmune vulnerability or resilience.