Roles of microglial membranes in Alzheimer's disease

Abstract

The majority of Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk genes are highly and selectively expressed by microglia in the brain. Several of these genes are related to lipid and cholesterol metabolism, lipid synthesis, lipid transport, endocytosis, exocytosis and phagocytosis. Therefore, studying the roles of cellular membrane biophysics in microglial function should improve our understanding of the AD pathology. In this chapter, we discuss how lipid rafts and membrane-cytoskeleton adhesion impact microglial-mediated oxidative stress and clearance of amyloid-β peptide (Aβ). We also discuss potential roles of lipid membrane-bound extracellular vesicles as carriers of pathological factors to promote inflammation and cytotoxicity.

Keywords: Alzheimer; Amyloid-β peptide; Caveolae; Cholesterol; Exosomes; Inflammation; Lipid rafts; Membrane-cytoskeleton adhesion; Oxidative stress; Tau.