Microglia: A pharmacological target for the treatment of age-related cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease.

Autor:	McKee CG; Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.; Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada., Hoffos M; Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.; Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada., Vecchiarelli HA; Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada., Tremblay MÈ; Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.; Département de Médecine Moléculaire, Université Laval, Québec City, QC, Canada.; Axe Neurosciences, Centre de Recherche du CHU de Québec, Université Laval, Québec City, QC, Canada.; Neurology and Neurosurgery Department, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.; Centre for Advanced Materials and Related Technology (CAMTEC), University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.; Institute for Aging and Lifelong Health, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	Frontiers in pharmacology [Front Pharmacol] 2023 Feb 09; Vol. 14, pp. 1125982. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Feb 09 (Print Publication: 2023).
DOI:	10.3389/fphar.2023.1125982
Abstrakt:	As individuals age, microglia, the resident immune cells of the central nervous system (CNS), become less effective at preserving brain circuits. Increases in microglial inflammatory activity are thought to contribute to age-related declines in cognitive functions and to transitions toward mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). As microglia possess receptors for communicating with the CNS environment, pharmacological therapies targeting these pathways hold potential for promoting homeostatic microglial functions within the aging CNS. Preclinical and early phase clinical trials investigating the therapeutic effects of pharmacological agents acting on microglia, including reactive oxygen species, TREM2, fractalkine signaling, the complement cascade, and the NLRP3 inflammasome, are currently underway; however, important questions remain unanswered. Current challenges include target selectivity, as many of the signaling pathways are expressed in other cell types. Furthermore, microglia are a heterogenous cell population with transcriptomic, proteomic, and microscopy studies revealing distinct microglial states, whose activities and abundance shift across the lifespan. For example, homeostatic microglia can transform into pathological states characterized by markers of oxidative stress. Selective pharmacological targeting aimed at limiting transitions to pathological states or promoting homeostatic or protective states, could help to avoid potentially harmful off-target effects on beneficial states or other cell types. In this mini-review we cover current microglial pathways of interest for the prevention and treatment of age-related cognitive decline and CNS disorders of aging focusing on MCI and AD. We also discuss the heterogeneity of microglia described in these conditions and how pharmacological agents could target specific microglial states. Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. (Copyright © 2023 McKee, Hoffos, Vecchiarelli and Tremblay.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
Externí odkaz:	Zobrazit plný text záznamu