The present invention provides methods of treating neurodegenerative diseases, comprising administering agents that block dendritic cells from entering the brain from the blood. The present invention further describes methods for detecting the selective migration of dendritic cells from blood into brain as a marker of human neurodegenerative disease. The present invention further describes methods that can be used to evaluate and compare different embodiments of methods detecting migration of dendritic cells using transgenic mice that overexpress various mutations associated with induction of distinct neurodegenerative disease pathologies. These present inventions are particularly useful in the design and evaluation of clinical trials for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, small vessel diseases that include cerebral amyloid angiopathy, and fronto-temporal dementias, and specifically for the design and evaluation of clinical trials of agents that block dendritic cells from entering the brain for therapeutic purpose.
DENDRITIC CELL RECRUITMENT FROM BLOOD TO BRAIN IN NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASE