When immune cells move throughout the brain, they act as the first line of defense against viruses, toxic materials and damaged neurons, rushing over to clear out them.
Researchers at Indiana University School of Medicine have been investigating how these immune cells in the brain — microglia — relate to a gene mutation recently found in Alzheimer’s disease patients. They published their findings today in Science Advances.
The study, led by Hande Karahan, PhD, postdoctoral fellow in medical and molecular genetics, and Jungsu Kim, PhD, the P. Michael Conneally Professor of Medical and Molecular Genetics, found that deleting the gene — called ABI3 — significantly increased amyloid-beta plaque accumulation in the brain and decreased the amount of microglia around the plaques.
“This study can provide further insight into understanding the key functions of microglia contributing to…
