CGAS and brain ischemia: In cerebral ischemia and neurodegenerative diseases, cytosolic double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) activates the cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS) signaling pathway in microglia, promoting the expression of (Absent in melanoma 2) AIM-2/ NLRP3 and GSDMD, which leads to cell polarization and pyroptosis [26, 27, 62].