1180-Microglial Transitions at Amyloid-Tau Inflection Point

Paper Talk · Jun 24, 2026 · 23m

This research article from Nature Medicine examines how different brain cells react to amyloid-β (Aβ) and tau proteins to determine Alzheimer's disease progression or cognitive resilience. By analyzing brain tissue from octogenarians and centenarians, the authors identified a critical immune inflection point where microglial activity shifts from an early inflammatory response to a late-stage antigen-presenting state. The study reveals that cognitive resilience follows two distinct paths: some elderly individuals avoid the late-stage microglial program entirely, while others activate it but…