Synopsis

Keywords: Neuro: Nervous system, Neuro: Neurodegeneration, Neuro: Brain

Neuroinflammation is a key immune response observed in many neurological and neurodegenerative diseases. While an appropriate immune response can be beneficial, aberrant activation of this response recruits excessive proinflammatory cells to cause damage. Thus, neuroinflammation can exert damaging as well as beneficial effects depending on the context. This talk will provide a broad overview of neuroinflammation and describe its unique aspects. Key immune cells and factors in mediating neuroinflammation will be introduced followed by a discussion of clinical and emerging biomarkers for neuroinflammation, including an imaging method to differentiate damaging and reparative neuroinflammatory responses in vivo by MRI.