Science Spotlight: Microglial states as druggable nodes in CNS disease

Nature Neuroscience published a trio of microglia‑centric papers that reframes these cells as druggable, disease‑defining states rather than generic neuroinflammatory bystanders.

Using single‑cell spatial proteomics in human brains affected by Alzheimer’s, Akoya Biosciences Inc. and collaborators at Oregon Health & Science University mapped microenvironment‑dependent microglial phenotypes that sit at the edge of β-amyloid plaques and shift markers such as CD33, CD44, HLA‑DR, P2RY12 and APOE, effectively nominating plaque‑adjacent microglia as a target class...