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Neuroimmunology

CD8+ T cells pump the brakes on Alzheimer’s disease

Nature Immunology volume 24, pages 1597–1598 (2023)Cite this article

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A recent study identified a microglia–T cell communication axis that retains CD8+ T cells in brains with amyloid pathology. Data from this study indicate that CD8+ T cells restrict Alzheimer’s disease pathogenesis.

Gone are the days of considering the brain an immune-privileged site that is isolated from the peripheral immune system. The presence of inflammatory CD8+ T cells within the brain is now known to be associated with a number of neurological disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease1. CD8+ T cells have been described in the brains of individuals with Alzheimer’s disease2 and in mouse models of the disease3; however, whether they contribute to removing proteinaceous aggregates that define the disease or accelerate disease processes is not well understood. Most recent studies support the hypothesis that T cells worsen disease, but new research from Su et al.4 reported in this issue of Nature Immunology instead describes brain-infiltrating CD8+ T cells as protectors, not perpetrators, of Alzheimer’s disease pathology.

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Fig. 1: Balance of inflammatory and immunosuppressive T cells in Alzheimer’s disease.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, USA

    Katie L. Reagin & Kristen E. Funk

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  1. Katie L. Reagin
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  2. Kristen E. Funk
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Correspondence to Kristen E. Funk.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Reagin, K.L., Funk, K.E. CD8+ T cells pump the brakes on Alzheimer’s disease. Nat Immunol 24, 1597–1598 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41590-023-01622-x

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