Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42316324›Full record

ReviewAlzheimer's research & therapy2026

Impact of sex differences on microglial function in Alzheimer's disease.

Emilly V Figueiredo, Caroline Vieira Azevedo, Arlete Rita Penitente, Vinicius R Pedrosa, Vinicius R Camilo da Silva, Beatriz Monteiro Longo

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Alzheimer's research & therapy, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Emilly V Figueiredo *Departamento de Fisiologia, Escola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP - São Paulo, Rua Botucatu, 862, 5º andar Vila Clementino, São Paulo, SP, 04023-062, Brasil.
Caroline Vieira Azevedo *Departamento de Fisiologia, Escola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP - São Paulo, Rua Botucatu, 862, 5º andar Vila Clementino, São Paulo, SP, 04023-062, Brasil.
Arlete Rita Penitente *Escola de Medicina, Departamento de Ginecologia Obstetrícia e Propedêutica, Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, UFOP - Ouro Preto, Ouro Preto, MG, Brasil.
Vinicius R PedrosaDepartamento de Fisiologia, Escola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP - São Paulo, Rua Botucatu, 862, 5º andar Vila Clementino, São Paulo, SP, 04023-062, Brasil.
Vinicius R Camilo da SilvaDepartamento de Fisiologia, Escola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP - São Paulo, Rua Botucatu, 862, 5º andar Vila Clementino, São Paulo, SP, 04023-062, Brasil.
Beatriz Monteiro LongoDepartamento de Fisiologia, Escola Paulista de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, UNIFESP - São Paulo, Rua Botucatu, 862, 5º andar Vila Clementino, São Paulo, SP, 04023-062, Brasil. beatriz.longo@unifesp.br.

Funding

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico 312904/2021-5Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior 001Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo 2022/00249-8
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Aging is the strongest risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD), a multifactorial neurodegenerative disorder characterized by amyloid-β (Aβ) accumulation, tau pathology (hyperphosphorylated tau and neurofibrillary tangles [NFTs]), and associated neuroinflammatory processes. Age-related cellular and molecular stressors, including mitochondrial dysfunction, genomic instability, and chronic low-grade inflammation, progressively increase vulnerability to neurodegeneration. In parallel, sex is increasingly recognized as a biological variable that shapes AD risk, clinical course, and neuropathological burden. Women account for roughly two-thirds of AD cases, a disparity not fully explained by longevity. Multiple factors likely contribute, including hormonal transitions across the lifespan (particularly menopausal estrogen decline), sex chromosome-linked immune regulation, sex-dependent interactions between genetic risk factors (e.g., APOE4 and TREM2) and brain aging, and differences in vascular risk, cognitive reserve, and sociocultural exposures that influence disease expression and detection. Microglia, the brain's resident immune cells, are sexually dimorphic, and respond to Aβ and tau pathology, modulating inflammatory signaling, synaptic remodeling, and neurovascular dysfunction implicated in AD. Emerging human and experimental evidence indicate that microglial activation states, immunometabolism, and functional responses differ between males and females and may contribute to sex-specific AD trajectories. Here, we synthesize current evidence supporting microglial sexual dimorphism across aging and AD, highlight possible candidates (hormonal signaling, immuno-aging, disease-associated microglial states, and immunometabolic remodeling), and discuss key knowledge gaps toward sex-informed precision approaches for prevention and treatment.

Indexed as

Alzheimer DiseaseBrainMicrogliaSex CharacteristicsAgingAmyloid beta-PeptidesAnimalsFemaleHumansMaleAmyloid beta-Peptides

Identifiers

PMID42316324
PMCPMC13532007

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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 Socratic graph.