Table 1 Immune properties of glia and neurons in the CNS
From: Neuroimmune crosstalk in the central nervous system and its significance for neurological diseases
| Properties | Microglia | Astrocyte | Neuron |
|---|---|---|---|
| Innate immunity | |||
| PRRs | High [16–19] | High [20] | Low [21] |
| Phagocytic receptors | High [16–19] | Low [20] | Unknown |
| Cytokine production | |||
| Pro-inflammatory | Yes [16–19] | Yes [10, 20, 22] | Yes [8, 23] |
| Anti-inflammatory | Yes [16–19] | Yes [10, 20, 22] | Yes [23–28] |
| Adaptive immunity | |||
| MHC classes | I & II [17, 29] Inducible | I & II [22, 29–31] Low/inducible | I [32] Inducible |
| Co-stimulatory molecules | Inducible [17, 29] | Low/inducible | Unknown |
| Antigen presentation | Yes [17, 29] | Controversial [29] | Unknown |
| T-cell differentiation | Th1, Th2 [17, 29, 33] | Th2 [33, 34], | Largely unknown |
| Th1 [33, 34], | |||
| Treg [35, 36] | |||
| Induction of apoptosis | |||
| T cells | Yes [18, 29, 37–41] | Yes [18, 29, 37–41] | Yes [18, 29, 37–41] |
| Microglia | Yes [18, 29, 37–41] (self-limiting) | Yes [18, 29, 37–41] | Yes [18, 29, 37–41] |