The perceived role of the immune system in neurodegenerative diseases has undergone drastic changes over time. Initially considered as a passive bystander, then condemned as a mediator of neurodegeneration and now established as an important player in the pathogenetic cascade, neuroimmune interactions have come a long way to arrive center stage in Alzheimer's disease research. Despite major breakthroughs in recent years, basic questions remain unanswered as conflicting data describe immune overactivation, inadequate response or exhaustion of the immune system in neurodegenerative diseases. Furthermore, difficulties in translating in vitro and in vivo studies in model systems to the complex human disease condition with multiple overlapping pathologies and the long disease duration in patients suffering from neurodegenerative diseases have hampered progress. Development of novel, advanced model systems, as well as new technologies to interrogate existing disease models and valuable collections of human tissue samples, including brain tissue in parallel with improved imaging and biomarker technologies are guiding the way to better understand the role of the immune system in Alzheimer's disease with hopes for more effective interventions in the future.

随着时间的推移，免疫系统在神经退行性疾病中的作用已经发生了巨大的变化。神经免疫相互作用最初被认为是一个被动的旁观者，后来被谴责为神经退行性变的介质，现在被确立为发病级联中的重要参与者，神经免疫相互作用已经经历了很长的路要走，才成为阿尔茨海默病研究的中心舞台。尽管近年来取得了重大突破，但基本问题仍未得到解答，因为关于神经退行性疾病中免疫过度激活、反应不足或免疫系统衰竭的数据相互矛盾。此外，将模型系统中的体外和体内研究转化为具有多种重叠病理学的复杂人类疾病状况以及神经退行性疾病患者的长期病程存在困难，这阻碍了进展。开发新颖、先进的模型系统以及用于询问现有疾病模型和有价值的人体组织样本（包括脑组织）集合的新技术，同时改进成像和生物标志物技术，正在为更好地了解免疫系统的作用提供指导。阿尔茨海默病的研究希望在未来能有更有效的干预措施。