ReviewFrontiers in cellular neuroscience2022
What microglia depletion approaches tell us about the role of microglia on synaptic function and behavior.
Review in Frontiers in cellular neuroscience, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 42 citations in OpenAlex.
- The impact of CSF1R inhibitor-mediated microglial depletion in rodent models of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2026Pooled it
- Corticosterone-linked microglial activity underpins sexually dimorphic neuroplasticity after ketamine anesthesia.Science advances · 2026Article
- PLX5622 did not alter anxiety-like behaviour and showed limited microglial depletion efficacy in a spinal cord injury model in female rats.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Caudal Granular Insular Cortex to Somatosensory Cortex I: A Critical Pathway for the Transition of Acute to Chronic Pain.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2026Article
- Single-cell transcriptomics reveals distinct microglial state remodeling associated with the (R)-nicotine/diosmetin combination and galantamine in LPS-challenged BV2 cells.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Article
- Glial-Dopamine crosstalk: Astrocytic and microglial gatekeepers of neuroinflammation, plasticity, and motivation.AIMS neuroscience · 2026Review
- The metabolic engine of cognition: microglia-neuron interactions in health, ageing and disease.Nature metabolism · 2025Review
- Article
- Microglia interact with dendritic spines and regulate spine numbers after brain injury following resuscitation from a cardiac arrest.Experimental neurology · 2025Article
- Microglia are prominent producers of inflammatory cytokines during the hyperacute phase of ischemic stroke.Communications biology · 2025Article
- Understanding TAK1 deficiency in microglia: Dual mechanisms for photoreceptor protection in a mouse model of retinitis pigmentosa.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- Neutrophil infiltration and microglial shifts in sepsis induced preterm brain injury: pathological insights.Acta neuropathologica communications · 2025Article
- Is the Relationship Between Adolescent Social Isolation and Anxiety-Like Behaviors Altered by Microglia Ablation in Female Long Evans Rats?Brain and behavior · 2025Article
- Satellite microglia: marker of traumatic brain injury and regulator of neuronal excitability.Journal of neuroinflammation · 2025Article
- Microglial dynamics and emerging therapeutic strategies in CNS homeostasis and pathology.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Review
- Neuroimmune crosstalk in chronic neuroinflammation: microglial interactions and immune modulation.Frontiers in cellular neuroscience · 2025Review
- The Critical Role of Autophagy and Phagocytosis in the Aging Brain.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Review
- Mapping the publication trends of synaptic plasticity in neuropathic pain: A bibliometric analysis.Journal of anesthesia and translational medicine · 2024Article
- Transient CSF1R inhibition ameliorates behavioral deficits in Cntnap2 knockout and valproic acid-exposed mouse models of autism.Journal of neuroinflammation · 2024Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Microglia are dynamic cells, constantly surveying their surroundings and interacting with neurons and synapses. Indeed, a wealth of knowledge has revealed a critical role of microglia in modulating synaptic transmission and plasticity in the developing brain. In the past decade, novel pharmacological and genetic strategies have allowed the acute removal of microglia, opening the possibility to explore and understand the role of microglia also in the adult brain. In this review, we summarized and discussed the contribution of microglia depletion strategies to the current understanding of the role of microglia on synaptic function, learning and memory, and behavior both in physiological and pathological conditions. We first described the available microglia depletion methods highlighting their main strengths and weaknesses. We then reviewed the impact of microglia depletion on structural and functional synaptic plasticity. Next, we focused our analysis on the effects of microglia depletion on behavior, including general locomotor activity, sensory perception, motor function, sociability, learning and memory both in healthy animals and animal models of disease. Finally, we integrated the findings from the reviewed studies and discussed the emerging roles of microglia on the maintenance of synaptic function, learning, memory strength and forgetfulness, and the implications of microglia depletion in models of brain disease.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.