Scientists have identified dozens of previously unknown genetic risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease in one of the largest studies into the condition to date. The findings offer new clues about brain cells and biological processes that could contribute to the disease.

The study, which pooled data from 30 research groups, analyzed genetic data from approximately 2.8 million people, including 183,620 with an Alzheimer’s diagnosis. Researchers identified 127 regions in human DNA associated with the risk of developing the disease, 48 of which had not yet been discovered in this context.

One of the study’s authors, Emil Uffelmann of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam in the Netherlands, told Newsweek: We identified 48 new regions of the genome linked to Alzheimer’s disease risk, and our results point to microglia, the brain’s immune cells, as well as specific types of neurons. These findings provide clues about biological mechanisms that could become therapeutic targets.