The Role of Glia in Alzheimer's Disease

A special issue of Biomolecules (ISSN 2218-273X). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Medicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2025) | Viewed by 9211

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
VIB-KU Leuven Center for Brain & Disease Research, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
Interests: neuroscience; neurodegeneration; Alzheimer's disease; necroptosis; cell death; CRISPR; organoids; stem cells; genome-wide screens; TAU; amyloid

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a devastating neurodegenerative disease and the leading cause of dementia worldwide. AD is characterized by the presence of abnormal protein deposits, inflammation in the brain, vascular changes, necroptosis activation, and associated neuronal loss. Recent advances in genome-wide association studies and single-cell transcriptomic studies from post-mortem brain samples and experimental animal models strongly implicate glial cells in the pathogenesis of AD. Our understanding of glia biology in the disease onset and progression of AD is swiftly evolving.

Therefore, this Biomolecules Special Issue centers around the latest developments concerning the involvement and contributions of glial cells in AD. The subjects covered will encompass, but will not be restricted to, the involvement of glia, including microglia, astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and Ng2 cells, in AD's pathogenesis and their therapeutic implications. This Special Issue showcases the role of glial cells, their context-dependent neuroprotective and neurotoxic functions, multi-faced cellular states, and their response during the disease. We welcome original contributions and review articles that provide comprehensive overviews of the latest literature. Gaining insights into both the cellular autonomous and non-cell autonomous functions of the glia holds great potential for developing targeted therapies to modulate glial behavior to promote neuroprotection and alleviate the disease.

Dr. Sriram Balusu
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • Alzheimer's disease
  • neurodegeneration
  • glial cells

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

21 pages, 1324 KiB  
Review
Targeting Microglia in Alzheimer’s Disease: Pathogenesis and Potential Therapeutic Strategies
by Zhongqing Sun, Xin Zhang, Kwok-Fai So, Wen Jiang and Kin Chiu
Biomolecules 2024, 14(7), 833; https://doi.org/10.3390/biom14070833 - 11 Jul 2024
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 8670
Abstract
Microglia, as resident macrophages in the central nervous system, play a multifunctional role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Their clustering around amyloid-β (Aβ) deposits is a core pathological feature of AD. Recent advances in single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and single-nucleus RNA [...] Read more.
Microglia, as resident macrophages in the central nervous system, play a multifunctional role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Their clustering around amyloid-β (Aβ) deposits is a core pathological feature of AD. Recent advances in single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and single-nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA-seq) have revealed dynamic changes in microglial phenotypes over time and across different brain regions during aging and AD progression. As AD advances, microglia primarily exhibit impaired phagocytosis of Aβ and tau, along with the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines that damage synapses and neurons. Targeting microglia has emerged as a potential therapeutic approach for AD. Treatment strategies involving microglia can be broadly categorized into two aspects: (1) enhancing microglial function: This involves augmenting their phagocytic ability against Aβ and cellular debris and (2) mitigating neuroinflammation: Strategies include inhibiting TNF-α signaling to reduce the neuroinflammatory response triggered by microglia. Clinical trials exploring microglia-related approaches for AD treatment have garnered attention. Additionally, natural products show promise in enhancing beneficial effects and suppressing inflammatory responses. Clarifying microglial dynamics, understanding their roles, and exploring novel therapeutic approaches will advance our fight against AD. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Role of Glia in Alzheimer's Disease)
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