The engagement of microglia in tau-targeted immunotherapy in Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an age-related neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive memory decline, histopathological lesions such as amyloid beta plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, and neuroinflammation driven by glial cells. Microglia, the innate immune cells of the brain, dynamically survey their environment for signs of infection and cell damage. Although our understanding of microglia and their modes of activation has expanded in recent years, their role in AD is still not completely understood. Broad range of microglia phenotypes, from neuroinflammatory to neuroprotective, found in neurodegenerative diseases make their role difficult to discern. In this review, we summarize activities of microglia in healthy and AD brains and their possible role during immunotherapy targeted against pathological tau proteins.