Microglia heterogeneity in health and disease

Abstract

Microglia, the resident immune cells of the central nervous system (CNS), have received significant attention due to their critical roles in maintaining brain homeostasis and mediating cerebral immune responses. Understanding the origin of microglia has been a subject of great interest, and emerging evidence suggests that microglia consist of multiple subpopulations with unique molecular and functional characteristics. These subpopulations of microglia may exhibit specialized roles in response to different environmental cues as in disease conditions. The newfound understanding of microglial heterogeneity has significant implications for elucidating their roles in both physiological and pathological conditions. In the context of disease, microglia have been studied rigorously as they play a very important role in neuroinflammation. Dysregulated microglial activation and function contribute to chronic inflammation. Further exploration of microglial heterogeneity and their interactions with other cell types in the CNS will undoubtedly pave the way to novel therapeutic strategies targeting microglia‐mediated pathologies. In this review, we discuss the latest advances in the field of microglia research, focusing specifically on the origin and subpopulations of microglia, the populations of microglia types in the brains of patients with neurodegenerative diseases, and how microglia are regulated in the healthy CNS.

An open chat with… Koji Yamanaka

“…Kawade and Yamanaka reviewed brain lipid metabolism in AD and its implication in oligodendrocyte abnormalities, an under‐investigated aspect of AD [ 3 ]. Finally, Dadwal and Heneka focused on microglia, innate immune cells in the brain and their heterogeneity in AD [ 4 ]. I hope that this ‘In the Limelight’ issue will attract the keen interest of FEBS Open Bio readers and encourage more neuroscience manuscripts to be published in this journal.…”

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