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TREM2 deficiency impairs chemotaxis and microglial responses to neuronal injury
Mazaheri F, Snaidero N, Kleinberger G, Madore C, Daria A, Werner G, Krasemann S, Capell A et al.. EMBO reports, 2017-05-08
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Sequence variations in the triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) have been linked to an increased risk for neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal lobar degeneration. In the brain, TREM2 is predominantly expressed in microglia. Several disease-associated TREM2 variants result in a loss of function by reducing microglial phagocytosis, impairing lipid sensing, preventing binding of lipoproteins and affecting shielding of amyloid plaques. We here investigate the consequences of TREM2 loss of function on the microglia transcriptome. Among the differentially expressed messenger RNAs in wild-type and Trem2 -/- microglia, gene clusters are identified which represent gene functions in chemotaxis, migration and mobility. Functional analyses confirm that loss of TREM2 impairs appropriate microglial responses to injury and signals that normally evoke chemotaxis on multiple levels. In an ex vivo organotypic brain slice assay, absence of TREM2 reduces the distance migrated by microglia. Moreover, migration towards defined chemo-attractants is reduced upon ablation of TREM2 and can be rescued by TREM2 re-expression. In vivo , microglia lacking TREM2 migrate less towards injected apoptotic neurons, and outgrowth of microglial processes towards sites of laser-induced focal CNS damage in the somatosensory cortex is slowed. The apparent lack of chemotactic stimulation upon depletion of TREM2 is consistent with a stable expression profile of genes characterizing the homoeostatic signature of microglia.
Key findings
- Sequence variations in the triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) have been linked to an increased risk for neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal lobar degeneration.
- Several disease-associated TREM2 variants result in a loss of function by reducing microglial phagocytosis, impairing lipid sensing, preventing binding of lipoproteins and affecting shielding of amyloid plaques.
Why it matters
In mice and brain slice experiments, loss of TREM2 reduced how well microglia moved toward injured neurons and toward sites of damage. This is animal and laboratory work on a risk gene, not a treatment or prevention study in people.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 56/100
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 (EMBO reports) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | EMBO Reports: journal h-index 252 (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 | 6 / 7 | Cited 349 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 31.7 citations a year over 11 year(s) since 2017 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 14.4× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 4 / 6 | Cited by 73 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 107 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Christian Haass: h-index 139 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Harvard University: institution h-index 3,235 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 3 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 11 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 28483841) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 56 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
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Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Mazaheri, F., Snaidero, N., Kleinberger, G., Madore, C., Daria, A., Werner, G., et al. (2017). TREM2 deficiency impairs chemotaxis and microglial responses to neuronal injury. EMBO reports. https://doi.org/10.15252/embr.201743922
Vancouver
Mazaheri F, Snaidero N, Kleinberger G, Madore C, Daria A, Werner G, et al. TREM2 deficiency impairs chemotaxis and microglial responses to neuronal injury. EMBO reports. 2017. doi:10.15252/embr.201743922. PMID: 28483841.
BibTeX
@article{mazaheri2017-28483841,
author = {Mazaheri, F. and Snaidero, N. and Kleinberger, G. and Madore, C. and Daria, A. and Werner, G. and Krasemann, S. and Capell, A. and others},
title = {{TREM2 deficiency impairs chemotaxis and microglial responses to neuronal injury}},
journal = {EMBO reports},
year = {2017},
doi = {10.15252/embr.201743922},
pmid = {28483841},
url = {https://doi.org/10.15252/embr.201743922}
}
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