Peripheral immune priming intensifies tau-driven brain damage in mice

A study in a tauopathy mouse model shows that dendritic cells outside the brain activate CD8+ T cells, which then infiltrate the brain and worsen inflammation and neuronal loss. This identifies a peripheral immune pathway that contributes to tau-dependent neurodegeneration.

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The research traces a sequence where immune signaling begins outside the central nervous system. Peripheral dendritic cells initiate a response in CD8+ T cells, which subsequently migrate into the brain.

Once inside,