Editor’s summary The acetyltransferase GCN5 is implicated in various diseases involving inflammation in peripheral tissues. Cho et al. found that GCN5 mediates inflammation in the brain as well, suggesting that it may be a target for treating neuroinflammatory diseases. In mice, inducing an innate immune response in the periphery (to mimic an infection) selectively increased the abundance of GCN5 in microglia in the brain.