Plaque attack: Microglia have hard feelings toward amyloid-β

Classically, microglia recognize and internalize amyloid-β (Aβ) via it binding to cell surface receptors. In this issue of Neuron, Hu et al.¹ report that microglia "feel" and internalize Aβ plaques using the stiffness-sensing channel Piezo1. This could allow new approaches to treating Alzheimer's disease.