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Markers of microglia in post-mortem brain samples from patients with Alzheimer's disease: a systematic review
Hopperton KE, Mohammad D, Trépanier MO, Giuliano V, Bazinet RP.. Molecular psychiatry, 2017-12-12
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Neuroinflammation is proposed as one of the mechanisms by which Alzheimer's disease pathology, including amyloid-β plaques, leads to neuronal death and dysfunction. Increases in the expression of markers of microglia, the main neuroinmmune cell, are widely reported in brains from patients with Alzheimer's disease, but the literature has not yet been systematically reviewed to determine whether this is a consistent pathological feature. A systematic search was conducted in Medline, Embase and PsychINFO for articles published up to 23 February 2017.
Key findings
- Increases in the expression of markers of microglia, the main neuroinmmune cell, are widely reported in brains from patients with Alzheimer's disease, but the literature has not yet been systematically reviewed to determine whether this is a consistent pathological feature.
- A systematic search was conducted in Medline, Embase and PsychINFO for articles published up to 23 February 2017.
- Papers were included if they quantitatively compared microglia markers in post-mortem brain samples from patients with Alzheimer's disease and aged controls without neurological disease.
- A total of 113 relevant articles were identified.
Why it matters
This systematic review searched Medline, Embase and PsychINFO up to 23 February 2017 for studies that measured markers of microglia, the brain's main immune cells, in post-mortem brain tissue from people with Alzheimer's disease compared with aged people without neurological disease. It found 113 such articles, and its aim was to test whether raised microglia markers are a consistent feature of Alzheimer's brains. It looks only at brain tissue after death and reports no treatment, cure or prevention.
Study details
- Participants113
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 72/100
Published in a leading specialty journal, and it is a systematic review of all the studies on the question. Scored zero for effect reported because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Molecular psychiatry) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Molecular Psychiatry: journal h-index 318 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 12 / 12 | A systematic review of all the studies on the question (from PubMed type “Systematic Review”) |
| 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 | 2018 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 113 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | A review of other studies — randomisation is not credited here |
| Times cited | 6 / 7 | Cited 569 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 5 / 5 | 56.9 citations a year over 10 year(s) since 2018 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 4.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 11 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 4 / 4 | Cited 205 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Richard Paul Bazinet: h-index 56 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of Toronto: institution h-index 1,923 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 29230021) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 72 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Hopperton, K. E., Mohammad, D., Trépanier, M. O., Giuliano, V., & Bazinet, R. P. (2018). Markers of microglia in post-mortem brain samples from patients with Alzheimer's disease: a systematic review. Molecular psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2017.246
Vancouver
Hopperton KE, Mohammad D, Trépanier MO, Giuliano V, Bazinet RP. Markers of microglia in post-mortem brain samples from patients with Alzheimer's disease: a systematic review. Molecular psychiatry. 2018. doi:10.1038/mp.2017.246. PMID: 29230021.
BibTeX
@article{hopperton2018-29230021,
author = {Hopperton, K. E. and Mohammad, D. and Trépanier, M. O. and Giuliano, V. and Bazinet, R. P.},
title = {{Markers of microglia in post-mortem brain samples from patients with Alzheimer's disease: a systematic review}},
journal = {Molecular psychiatry},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.1038/mp.2017.246},
pmid = {29230021},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2017.246}
}
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