Reestablishing microglia function: good news for Alzheimer's therapy?

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of age-related neurodegenerative disease resulting in dementia. The current notion is that AD is based on a pathological plaque-forming accumulation of amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides that originate from a disturbed balance between production and removal of Aβ peptides. Loss of Aβ uptake capacity by brain microglia is linked to Aβ plaque formation and AD onset. In this issue of The EMBO Journal, Daria and colleagues show that this microglia dysfunction is reversible and that existing Aβ plaques can be cleared, suggesting that restoring microglia function may be vital for treating AD.
Source: EMBO Journal - Category: Molecular Biology Authors: Tags: Molecular Biology of Disease, Neuroscience News [amp ] Views Source Type: research