Pharmacological and Nutritional Approaches to Modulate Microglial Polarization in Cognitive Senescence

Brain aging, characterized by age-related changes, significantly impacts cognitive function. Microglia cells are resident macrophages in the CNS that are responsible for maintaining brain homeostasis. Normally older people exhibit a high inflammatory condition in brain. Thus any small insult will trigger the microglia activation and polarize into pro-inflammatory (M1) and anti-inflammatory (M2) states. Microglia acts as a double-end sword by both promoting and ameliorating cognitive senescence. Cognitive impairment is a common condition seen in elderly people. Microglia holds an upper hand in pathophysiology of diseases, like Alzheimer’s, that impair cognitive health. Thus understanding the action of microglia is essential for avoiding further depletion of cognitive activities. In this book chapter, we have discussed a detailed view on the senescence of brain cells and the role of microglial cells senescence in the impairment of cognitive functioning. Moreover we also discuss about various pharmacological and nutritional approaches involved in the modulating microglial function thereby restoring the cognitive functions.