Translational research to clarify the microglia hypothesis of psychiatric disorders

Abstract

Neuronal synaptic disfunction has been the central hypothesis of psychiatric disorders and drug developments has been conducted based on the above hypothesis. Microglia are immune cells in the brain, releasing cytokines free radicals, and are recently known to contact directly with synapses. In this mini review, we will introduce the microglia hypothesis of psychiatric disorders, and show our recent translational research approach especially using human bloods. No potential conflicts of interest were disclosed.