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A Unique Microglia Type Associated with Restricting Development of Alzheimer's Disease
Keren-Shaul H, Spinrad A, Weiner A, Matcovitch-Natan O, Dvir-Szternfeld R, Ulland TK, David E, Baruch K et al.. Cell, 2017-06-08
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a detrimental neurodegenerative disease with no effective treatments. Due to cellular heterogeneity, defining the roles of immune cell subsets in AD onset and progression has been challenging. Using transcriptional single-cell sorting, we comprehensively map all immune populations in wild-type and AD-transgenic (Tg-AD) mouse brains.
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APA 7th
Keren-Shaul, H., Spinrad, A., Weiner, A., Matcovitch-Natan, O., Dvir-Szternfeld, R., Ulland, T. K., et al. (2017). A Unique Microglia Type Associated with Restricting Development of Alzheimer's Disease. Cell. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2017.05.018
Vancouver
Keren-Shaul H, Spinrad A, Weiner A, Matcovitch-Natan O, Dvir-Szternfeld R, Ulland TK, et al. A Unique Microglia Type Associated with Restricting Development of Alzheimer's Disease. Cell. 2017. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2017.05.018. PMID: 28602351.
BibTeX
@article{kerenshaul2017-28602351,
author = {Keren-Shaul, H. and Spinrad, A. and Weiner, A. and Matcovitch-Natan, O. and Dvir-Szternfeld, R. and Ulland, T. K. and David, E. and Baruch, K. and others},
title = {{A Unique Microglia Type Associated with Restricting Development of Alzheimer's Disease}},
journal = {Cell},
year = {2017},
doi = {10.1016/j.cell.2017.05.018},
pmid = {28602351},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2017.05.018}
}
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Key findings
- Due to cellular heterogeneity, defining the roles of immune cell subsets in AD onset and progression has been challenging.
- Using transcriptional single-cell sorting, we comprehensively map all immune populations in wild-type and AD-transgenic (Tg-AD) mouse brains.
- We describe a novel microglia type associated with neurodegenerative diseases (DAM) and identify markers, spatial localization, and pathways associated with these cells.
- Immunohistochemical staining of mice and human brain slices shows DAM with intracellular/phagocytic Aβ particles.
Why it matters
By sorting and reading the genes of individual immune cells in normal and Alzheimer's-model mouse brains, this study described "a novel microglia type associated with neurodegenerative diseases (DAM)", along with its markers and location. Staining of mouse and human brain slices showed these cells carrying "intracellular/phagocytic Aβ particles". It is a mouse-led description of a brain immune cell; it does not show that these cells hold back Alzheimer's in people, and it tests no treatment.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 61/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Cell) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Cell: journal h-index 1,220 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2017 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 7 / 7 | Cited 5,463 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 5 / 5 | 496.6 citations a year over 11 year(s) since 2017 |
| Impact for its field and year | 6 / 6 | Cited 127.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 6 / 6 | Cited by 293 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 4 / 4 | Cited 2,275 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Ido Amit: h-index 114 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | Washington University in St. Louis: institution h-index 1,962 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 3 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 28602351) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 61 / 100 | — |
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