Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3β, NLRP3 Inflammasome, and Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent cause of dementia worldwide. Because of the progressive neurodegeneration, individual cognitive and behavioral functions are impaired, affecting the quality of life of millions of people. Although the exact pathogenesis of AD has not been fully elucidated, amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs), and sustaining neuroinflammation dominate its characteristics. As one of the major tau kinases leading to hyperphosphorylation and aggregation of tau, glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) has been drawing great attention in various AD studies. Another research focus of AD in recent years is the inflammasome, a multiprotein complex acting as a regulator in immunological reactions to exogenous and endogenous danger signals, of which the Nod-like receptor (NLR) family, pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome has been studied mostly in AD and proven to play a significant role in AD development by its activation and downstream effects such as caspase-1 maturation and interleukin (IL)-1β release. Studies have shown that the NLRP3 inflammasome is activated in a GSK-3β-dependent way and that inhibition of the NLRP3 inflammasome downregulates GSK-3β, suggesting that these two important proteins are closely related. This article reviews the respective roles of GSK-3β and the NLRP3 inflammasome in AD as well as their relationship and interaction.