Sirtuin 5 aggravates microglia-induced neuroinflammation following ischaemic stroke by modulating the desuccinylation of Annexin-A1

BACKGROUND: Microglia-induced excessive neuroinflammation plays a crucial role in the pathophysiology of multiple neurological diseases, such as ischaemic stroke. Controlling inflammatory responses is considered a promising therapeutic approach. Sirtuin 5 (SIRT5) mediates lysine desuccinylation, which is involved in various critical biological processes, but its role in ischaemic stroke remains poorly understood. This research systematically explored the function and potential mechanism of SIRT5 in microglia-induced neuroinflammation in ischaemic stroke. METHODS: Mice subjected to middle cerebral artery occlusion were established as the animal model, and primary cultured microglia treated with oxygen–glucose deprivation and reperfusion were established as the cell model of ischaemic stroke. SIRT5 short hairpin RNA, adenovirus and adeno-associated virus techniques were employed to modulate SIRT5 expression in microglia both in vitro and in vivo. Coimmunoprecipitation, western blot and quantitative real-time PCR assays were performed to reveal the molecular mechanism. RESULTS: In the current study, we showed that SIRT5 expression in microglia was increased in the early phase of ischaemic stroke. SIRT5 interacts with and desuccinylates Annexin A1 (ANXA1) at K166, which in turn decreases its SUMOylation level. Notably, the desuccinylation of ANXA1 blocks its membrane recruitment and extracellular secretion, resulting in the hyperactivation of microglia and excessive expression of proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines, ultimately leading to neuronal cell damage after ischaemic stroke. Further investigation showed that microglia-specific forced overexpression of SIRT5 worsened ischaemic brain injury, whereas downregulation of SIRT5 exhibited neuroprotective and cognitive-preserving effects against ischaemic brain injury, as proven by the decreased infarct area, reduced neurological deficit scores, and improved cognitive function. CONCLUSIONS: Collectively, these data identify SIRT5 as a novel regulator of microglia-induced neuroinflammation and neuronal damage after cerebral ischaemia. Interventions targeting SIRT5 expression may represent a potential therapeutic target for ischaemic stroke. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12974-022-02665-x.