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The microglial "activation" continuum: from innate to adaptive responses
Town T, Nikolic V, Tan J.. Journal of neuroinflammation, 2005-10-31
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Microglia are innate immune cells of myeloid origin that take up residence in the central nervous system (CNS) during embryogenesis. While classically regarded as macrophage-like cells, it is becoming increasingly clear that reactive microglia play more diverse roles in the CNS. Microglial "activation" is often used to refer to a single phenotype; however, in this review we consider that a continuum of microglial activation exists, with phagocytic response (innate activation) at one end and antigen presenting cell function (adaptive activation) at the other.
Key findings
- While classically regarded as macrophage-like cells, it is becoming increasingly clear that reactive microglia play more diverse roles in the CNS.
- Microglial "activation" is often used to refer to a single phenotype; however, in this review we consider that a continuum of microglial activation exists, with phagocytic response (innate activation) at one end and antigen presenting cell function (adaptive activation) at the other.
- Where activated microglia fall in this spectrum seems to be highly dependent on the type of stimulation provided.
- We begin by addressing the classical roles of peripheral innate immune cells including macrophages and dendritic cells, which seem to define the edges of this continuum.
Why it matters
This review proposes that microglia do not have just one activated state but exist along a continuum, from a phagocytic innate response to an antigen-presenting adaptive response. It does not report any treatment, cure or prevention result, so its relevance to patients is currently conceptual rather than clinical.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 49/100
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 (Journal of neuroinflammation) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Journal of Neuroinflammation: journal h-index 216 (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 | 2005 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| 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 458 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 19.9 citations a year over 23 year(s) since 2005 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 10.2× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 17 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 50 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Jun Tan: h-index 41 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | Yale University: institution h-index 1,927 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 16259628) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 49 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1186/1742-2094-2-24
- PubMed: 16259628
- Original source →
- Free full text: Journal of Neuroinflammation →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
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
Town, T., Nikolic, V., & Tan, J. (2005). The microglial "activation" continuum: from innate to adaptive responses. Journal of neuroinflammation. https://doi.org/10.1186/1742-2094-2-24
Vancouver
Town T, Nikolic V, Tan J. The microglial "activation" continuum: from innate to adaptive responses. Journal of neuroinflammation. 2005. doi:10.1186/1742-2094-2-24. PMID: 16259628.
BibTeX
@article{town2005-16259628,
author = {Town, T. and Nikolic, V. and Tan, J.},
title = {{The microglial "activation" continuum: from innate to adaptive responses}},
journal = {Journal of neuroinflammation},
year = {2005},
doi = {10.1186/1742-2094-2-24},
pmid = {16259628},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1186/1742-2094-2-24}
}
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