ITGAX and neurodegenerative disease: CD11c+ microglia are more numerous in aging and neurodegenerative disease and are a beneficial adaptation to apoptotic and necrotic neurons via their increased propensity for phagocytic clearance of dying cells (Wlodarczyk et al., 2015, 2018; Benmamar-Badel et al., 2020) and amyloid plaques (Kamphuis et al., 2016).