Inflammasome activation in neurodegenerative diseases

Abstract

Approximately ten million people are diagnosed with dementia annually since they experience difficulties with memory and thinking skills. Since neurodegenerative diseases are diagnosed late, most of them are difficult to treat. This is due to the increased severity of the disease during the progression when neuroinflammation plays a critical role. The activation of immune cells, especially microglia, plays a crucial role in the development of neurodegenerative diseases. Molecular sensors within these microglia, such as the NLRP3 inflammasome, are activated by signals that represent the hallmarks of neurodegenerative diseases. Here, we first summarize the two activation steps of NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Furthermore, we discuss the key factors that contribute to NLRP3 inflammasome activation in the different neuroinflammatory diseases, like Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The prominent NLRP3 inflammasome triggers include amyloid β and tau oligomers in AD, α-synuclein in PD, and superoxide dismutase (SOD1) and TAR DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP43) in ALS. NLRP3 inhibitor treatment has shown promising results in several preclinical mouse models of AD, PD, and ALS. Finally, we postulate that current understandings underpin the potential for NLRP3 inhibitors as a therapeutic target in neurodegenerative diseases.