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Microglial activation and its implications in the brain diseases
Dheen ST, Kaur C, Ling EA.. Current medicinal chemistry, 2007-01-01
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
An inflammatory process in the central nervous system (CNS) is believed to play an important role in the pathway leading to neuronal cell death in a number of neurodegenerative diseases including Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, prion diseases, multiple sclerosis and HIV-dementia. The inflammatory response is mediated by the activated microglia, the resident immune cells of the CNS, which normally respond to neuronal damage and remove the damaged cells by phagocytosis. Activation of microglia is a hallmark of brain pathology.
Key findings
- The inflammatory response is mediated by the activated microglia, the resident immune cells of the CNS, which normally respond to neuronal damage and remove the damaged cells by phagocytosis.
- Activation of microglia is a hallmark of brain pathology.
- However, it remains controversial whether microglial cells have beneficial or detrimental functions in various neuropathological conditions.
- The chronic activation of microglia may in turn cause neuronal damage through the release of potentially cytotoxic molecules such as proinflammatory cytokines, reactive oxygen intermediates, proteinases and complement proteins.
Why it matters
This review describes how activated microglia mediate the inflammatory response in the central nervous system and notes that it remains controversial whether microglia have beneficial or detrimental functions, with chronic activation possibly causing neuronal damage. It reports no treatment, cure or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 47/100
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 (Current medicinal chemistry) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Current Medicinal Chemistry: journal h-index 229 (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 | 1 / 5 | 2007 — within 20 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 | 6 / 7 | Cited 954 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 45.4 citations a year over 21 year(s) since 2007 |
| Impact for its field and year | 5 / 6 | Cited 21.1× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 3 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 91 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Eng‐Ang Ling: h-index 67 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | National University of Singapore: institution h-index 1,166 (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 17504139) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 47 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
May need a subscription OpenAlex found no free copy of the full text (checked 6 Feb 1020), so the publisher may charge for it. The PubMed abstract is free.
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
Dheen, S. T., Kaur, C., & Ling, E. A. (2007). Microglial activation and its implications in the brain diseases. Current medicinal chemistry. https://doi.org/10.2174/092986707780597961
Vancouver
Dheen ST, Kaur C, Ling EA. Microglial activation and its implications in the brain diseases. Current medicinal chemistry. 2007. doi:10.2174/092986707780597961. PMID: 17504139.
BibTeX
@article{dheen2007-17504139,
author = {Dheen, S. T. and Kaur, C. and Ling, E. A.},
title = {{Microglial activation and its implications in the brain diseases}},
journal = {Current medicinal chemistry},
year = {2007},
doi = {10.2174/092986707780597961},
pmid = {17504139},
url = {https://doi.org/10.2174/092986707780597961}
}
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