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Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics of cellular heterogeneity in Alzheimer disease
Emerson N, Vallejo K, Rahimzadeh N, Kwang NE, Swarup V.. Nature reviews. Neuroscience, 2026-11-06
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Alzheimer disease (AD) is defined neuropathologically by the presence of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, yet these canonical lesions alone cannot account for its clinical, regional and cellular heterogeneity. AD is a multicellular, spatially organized disease shaped by the interactions of neurons, glia and vascular cells within distinct anatomical microenvironments. Single-cell and single-nucleus RNA sequencing have made it possible to dissect the transcriptional signatures of individual cell populations in the AD brain, revealing selective neuronal vulnerability, stage-dependent glial remodelling and widespread disruption of cell-cell communication networks, whereas spatial transcriptomics and multiplexed imaging have anchored these molecular changes to their tissue context. Studies of defined populations, such as people with autosomal-dominant AD or Down syndrome-associated AD, and of the oldest-old cohorts help disentangle the molecular changes that are causal drivers from those that are downstream consequences. Across individuals, AD heterogeneity is further shaped by sex and ancestry, underscoring the need for broader representation of these factors in single-cell and spatial studies. These advances are also reshaping translational pipelines through multi-omic benchmarking of animal models and single-cell-based drug-repurposing strategies. Thus, single-cell and spatial transcriptomics are redefining our understanding of AD heterogeneity and informing precision approaches to treatment.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Emerson, N., Vallejo, K., Rahimzadeh, N., Kwang, N. E., & Swarup, V. (2026). Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics of cellular heterogeneity in Alzheimer disease. Nature reviews. Neuroscience. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41583-026-01096-4
Vancouver
Emerson N, Vallejo K, Rahimzadeh N, Kwang NE, Swarup V. Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics of cellular heterogeneity in Alzheimer disease. Nature reviews. Neuroscience. 2026. doi:10.1038/s41583-026-01096-4. PMID: 42995230.
BibTeX
@article{emerson2026-42995230,
author = {Emerson, N. and Vallejo, K. and Rahimzadeh, N. and Kwang, N. E. and Swarup, V.},
title = {{Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics of cellular heterogeneity in Alzheimer disease}},
journal = {Nature reviews. Neuroscience},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.1038/s41583-026-01096-4},
pmid = {42995230},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41583-026-01096-4}
}
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.
Key findings
- Single-cell and single-nucleus RNA sequencing have made it possible to dissect the transcriptional signatures of individual cell populations in the AD brain, revealing selective neuronal vulnerability, stage-dependent glial remodelling and widespread disruption of cell-cell communication networks, whereas spatial transcriptomics and multiplexed imaging have anchored these molecular changes to their tissue context.
- Studies of defined populations, such as people with autosomal-dominant AD or Down syndrome-associated AD, and of the oldest-old cohorts help disentangle the molecular changes that are causal drivers from those that are downstream consequences.
- Across individuals, AD heterogeneity is further shaped by sex and ancestry, underscoring the need for broader representation of these factors in single-cell and spatial studies.
- These advances are also reshaping translational pipelines through multi-omic benchmarking of animal models and single-cell-based drug-repurposing strategies.
- Thus, single-cell and spatial transcriptomics are redefining our understanding of AD heterogeneity and informing precision approaches to treatment.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 43/100
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. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 25 of the 58 points we could judge it on, which is 43 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Nature reviews. Neuroscience) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| 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 | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 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 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 42995230) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 25 / 58 | Scored on 11 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 25 of the 58 points we could judge it on is 43 out of 100. |
| Total | 43 / 100 | — |
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