Neuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms

When the brain's immune cells—primarily microglia and astrocytes—detect injury or disease, they trigger inflammatory responses that can both protect neurons and, if poorly regulated, accelerate their destruction. Researchers study how this double-edged process contributes to conditions like Alzheimer's disease, ischemic stroke, and traumatic brain injury, tracing the molecular signals, including cytokines and receptors like TREM2, that tip the balance toward harm. A central open question is why microglia sometimes clear dangerous debris through synaptic pruning and cellular cleanup while other times drive the very tissue loss seen in neurodegeneration. Understanding what controls that switch could point toward therapies that quiet damaging inflammation without stripping the brain of the immune protection it needs.

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Keywords

MicrogliaNeuroinflammationNeurodegenerationAstrocytesSynaptic PruningIschemic Stroke