Table 2.

Therapeutic strategy targeting microglia for CNS disorders.

Molecular or cellular target	Pharmacological intervention	Results	Reference
(i) Inflammatory response
Immuno modulator	Minocycline	Anti-apoptotic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant effects on several PD models.	(131)
COX2	NSAIDs	Prevention of inflammation and dyskinesia in the rotenone rat model.	(132)
(ii) Phenotypic transformation
Induces an M1 to M2 switch in microglia phenotype	Progesterone	Progesterone treatment reduced neurobehavioral deficits in the mouse demyelinating model.	(133)
Promoted transformation of microglial M1 phenotype to M2 phenotype	Fractalkine	FKN partially recovered the spatial memory of irradiated mice.	(134)
(iii) Microglia depletion and regeneration
Microglia depletion strategy	CSF1R inhibitors	Attenuates neurological abnormalities and brain edema.	(135)
Microglia repopulation strategy	Multipotent adult progenitor cells	Improved the BBB after traumatic brain injury, weakened the activated microglia macrophages in the dentate gyrus, and improved cognitive behavior.	(136)
(iv) Receptors and pathways
NF-κB, MAPK	Metformin	Ameliorated neurological deficit, cerebral edema, and neuronal apoptosis in rats following TBI.	(137)
Akt/mTOR/ STAT3 signaling pathway	6-gingerol	Reduced the size of infarction and improved neurological functions in the ischemia brain damage rat model.	(138)