Our research team, in collaboration with the LCSB of the University of Luxembourg, has just published its latest study in the prestigious journal Acta Neuropathologica. This study sheds new light on the role of the brain’s immune cells, called microglia, in the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

The findings reveal that these cells form distinct clusters and interact differently with the brain pathologies characteristic of the disease:
Plaque-associated microglia (PaM) are found around beta-amyloid plaques, which accumulate in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients.
Coffin-shaped microglia (CoM), newly described in this study, appear in a specific area of the hippocampus, a crucial brain region for memory. They are frequently in contact with damaged neurons and other protein accumulations involved in the disease.

Using advanced analytical techniques, we identified significant differences between these two microglial subtypes:
– PaM are involved in inflammatory and neurodegenerative processes, interacting with reactive astrocytes (cells that play a role in brain metabolism) and infiltrating macrophages.
– CoM, on the other hand, are associated with mechanisms related to cellular waste recycling and immune signaling.

These discoveries provide a deeper understanding of microglial involvement in Alzheimer’s disease and open new avenues to slow its progression.

Read more in the publication: “Microglia aggregates define distinct immune and neurodegenerative niches in Alzheimer’s disease hippocampus”, now available in Acta Neuropathologica!

Picture legend, from left to right: Gaël Hammer (epidemiologist, LNS), Sophie Schreiner (PhD student, LNS), Félicia Jeannelle (PhD student), David Bouvier (Scientific departement coordinator of the National Center of Pathology – NCP, LNS and last author), Monica Miranda de la Maza (visiting PhD student and first co-author), Jean-Jacques Gérardy (laboratory technician, LNS)