Microglial Scavenger Receptors and Their Roles in the Pathogenesis of Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is increasing in prevalence with the aging population. Deposition of amyloid-β (Aβ) in the brain of AD patients is a hallmark of the disease and is associated with increased microglial numbers and activation state. The interaction of microglia with Aβ appears to play a dicho...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of alzheimer's disease 2012, Vol.2012 (2012), p.1-10
Main Authors: Wilkinson, Kim, El Khoury, Joseph
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alzheimer's disease
Atherosclerosis
Brain
Chemokines
Collagen
Cytokines
Infections
Ligands
Pathogenesis
Phosphorylation
Proteins
Review
Rodents
Viral infections
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Summary:Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is increasing in prevalence with the aging population. Deposition of amyloid-β (Aβ) in the brain of AD patients is a hallmark of the disease and is associated with increased microglial numbers and activation state. The interaction of microglia with Aβ appears to play a dichotomous role in AD pathogenesis. On one hand, microglia can phagocytose and clear Aβ, but binding of microglia to Aβ also increases their ability to produce inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and neurotoxic reactive oxygen species (ROS). Scavenger receptors, a group of evolutionally conserved proteins expressed on the surface of microglia act as receptors for Aβ. Of particular interest are SCARA-1 (scavenger receptor A-1), CD36, and RAGE (receptor for advanced glycation end products). SCARA-1 appears to be involved in the clearance of Aβ, while CD36 and RAGE are involved in activation of microglia by Aβ. In this review, we discuss the roles of various scavenger receptors in the interaction of microglia with Aβ and propose that these receptors play complementary, nonredundant functions in the development of AD pathology. We also discuss potential therapeutic applications for these receptors in AD.
ISSN:2090-8024
2090-0252
DOI:10.1155/2012/489456