Monocyte-derived microglia with Dnmt3a mutation cause motor pathology in aging mice

Microglia are established in embryogenesis forming a self-containing cellular compartment resisting seeding with cells derived from adult definitive hematopoiesis. We report that monocyte-derived macrophages (MoM{Phi}) accumulate in the brain of aging mice with distinct topology, including the nigrostriatum and medulla, but not the frontal cortex. Parenchymal MoM{Phi} adopt bona fide microglia expression profiles. Unlike microglia, these monocyte-derived microglia (MoMg) are due to their hematopoietic origin targets of clonal hematopoiesis (CH). Using a chimeric transfer model, we show that hematopoietic expression of DNMT3AR822H, a prominent mutation in human CH, renders MoMg pathogenic promoting motor deficits resembling atypical Parkinsonian disorders. Collectively, these data establish in a mouse model that MoMg progressively seed the brains of aging healthy mice, accumulate in selected areas, and, when carrying a somatic mutation associated with CH, can contribute to brain pathology.