The role of MicroRNAs in Alzheimer's disease: from pathogenesis to therapeutic potential.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a major neurodegenerative disorder that severely impacts the global elderly population. It is characterized by progressive memory loss, cognitive impairment, and neuropsychiatric disturbances. To date, AD lacks definitive curative treatments, making it a persistent clinical challenge. Consequently, there is an urgent need to develop cost-effective and highly specific biomarkers for the early detection of AD. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are evolutionarily conserved, small non-coding RNAs. They are highly enriched in the central nervous system (CNS), where they orchestrate essential processes like axonal outgrowth, dendritic arborization, and synaptic plasticity. In AD patients, miRNAs actively regulate disease progression and exhibit abnormal expression profiles in peripheral blood. By modulating target genes across key pathological pathways-including β-amyloid (Aβ) aggregation, tau hyperphosphorylation, and neuroinflammation-miRNAs act as pivotal regulators of AD initiation. Therefore, systematically investigating their diagnostic and therapeutic potential could drive the development of innovative AD management strategies.