小胶质细胞的神经递质受体在阿尔茨海默病中的作用

The Role of Neurotransmitter Receptors on Microglia in Alzheimer’s Disease

阿尔茨海默病(Alzheimer’s disease,AD)是一种因蛋白错误折叠、聚积影响神经细胞功能,从而导致认知功能下降、行为异常的神经退行性疾病。小胶质细胞是中枢神经系统(central nervous system,CNS)中重要的免疫细胞之一,在AD病理过程中,根据其激活状态的不同小胶质细胞发挥神经保护或神经毒性作用。小胶质细胞上表达各类神经递质受体,这些受体参与介导小胶质细胞与神经细胞的双向沟通,在AD的病理进程中起到了不同的作用。该文重点介绍了小胶质细胞表面的γ-氨基丁酸(GABA)能、谷氨酸能、大麻素、胆碱能和肾上腺素能受体,以及它们与AD之间的关系,即小胶质细胞上的神经递质受体可以介导或影响小胶质细胞产生的神经保护或毒性作用,从而影响AD病理。阐明小胶质细胞上的神经递质受体在AD中的作用机制将会为探索合适的AD治疗靶点提供重要思路。

AD(Alzheimer’s disease)is a neurodegenerative disease caused by accumulation of misfolded proteins in neurons,which affects the normal functions of neurons and finally leads to cognitive decline in the aged people.Microglia is a major kind of immune cells and plays neuroprotective or neurotoxic roles according to its different states in CNS.Various neurotransmitter receptors express in microglia and mediate the bidirectional communication between microglia and neurons,and dysregulation of these receptors also play different roles in the pathogenesis of AD.This article reviewed the GABA(γ-aminobutyric acid)receptors,glutamatergic receptors,cannabinoid receptors,cholinergic receptors,and adrenergic receptors on microglia cells and the roles they played by influencing the signal transmission between microglia and neurons in AD.Elucidating the mechanism of neurotransmitter receptors on microglia in AD will provide important insights for explorating appropriate therapeutic targets for AD.