Current Alzheimer Research - Volume 10, Issue 3, 2013

The drawbacks of amyloid immunotherapy, including the development of encephalitis, the lack of clinical improvement and of any effect on neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs), coupled with the central role of NFTs in dementia, may point that clearance of amyloid pathology is not sufficient for improving the dementia symptoms in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. This further supported the concept that immunotherapy targeti Read More

During the last years the development of approaches to multitarget drug design and discovery is gaining acceptance. The cannabinoids are potentially excellent multi-target drug candidates because of their interesting pharmacological profiles, among which stands out the dual capacity of cannabinoid ligands to act as cannabinoid agonist and cholinesterase inhibitors. In this article, inhibition, kinetics studies and docking s Read More

Background: The histamine H3 receptor plays a critical role in the negative neuromodulation of neurotransmitters involved in cognitive function. H3 receptor antagonists/inverse agonists have been shown to exert pro-cognitive effects in pre-clinical models. GSK239512 is a potent and selective H3 receptor antagonist developed for the treatment of cognitive dysfunction in neurodegenerative disorders. In this study we examined Read More

We have examined the anti-angiogenic compound, angiostatin as a modulator of inflammatory reactivity and vascular responses and for neuroprotection in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Intra-hippocampal amyloidbeta (Aβ1-42) injection, relative to controls phosphate buffer saline (PBS) or reverse peptide Aβ42-1, increased gliosis in the molecular layer (ML) of rat hippocampus. Vascular remodeling wa Read More

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by senile plaques (SP) of extracellular amyloid β peptides(Aβ), neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) of intracellular hyper-phosphorylated tau and widespread loss of neurons. Apoptosis is the main reason of neuronal loss. It is proved that Aβ triggers apoptotic cell death via the activation of caspase-dependent and - independent cell death effectors, respectively. Valproic acid (VPA) is a widely used Read More

Our previous study has shown the preventive effects of quetiapine, an atypical antipsychotic drug, on memory impairment and brain pathological changes in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the therapeutic effects of quetiapine on memory deficit and neuropathology in an amyloid precursor protein (APP)/presenilin-1 (PS1) double transgenic mouse model of AD. The Read More

Spirolides are marine toxins that are not currently in the routine monitoring assays. Nicotinic receptors seem to be the target of these compounds making them a promising pharmacological tool for related diseases as dementias as previously shown in vitro. In the present work, the bioavailability of 13-desMethyl spirolide C (13-desMeC) in the brain and in vivo effects were tested. Bioavailability was studied by ultra-pe Read More

Diets containing a high proportion of fat with respect to protein plus carbohydrates are capable of inducing ketone body production in the liver, which provides an energetic alternative to glucose. Some ketogenic diets have been tested as therapeutic strategies for treating metabolic disorders related to a deficiency in glucose-driven ATP generation. However, ketone bodies are not capable of providing extra tricarboxy Read More

Cerebral hypoglycemia/hypometabolism is associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and is routinely used to assist clinical diagnosis of AD by brain imaging. However, whether cerebral hypoglycemia/hypometabolism contributes to the development of AD or is a response of reduced neuronal activity remains unclear. To investigate the causal relationship, we cultured the differentiated N2a neuroblastoma cells in glucose/pyruva Read More

The APOE genotype is a known susceptibility factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD). It is apparent that the presence of the APOE ε40 allele increases the risk for developing AD, lowers the age of onset in AD, and may influence the pathological burden seen in AD. In this study, we asked whether BACE1 levels differ by APOE genotype in the AD and non-demented (ND) brain. We isolated mid-frontal cortex (MFC) and mid-temporal c Read More

The soluble Abeta oligomers in brain are highly correlated with memory related synaptic dysfunctions in Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, more recent studies implicate the involvement of Abeta dimers and trimers in memory related AD pathology. Apparently, Abeta oligomers can bind with cellular prion protein at the membrane receptors, forming annular amyloid pores and membrane ion channels to induce aberrant spine Read More

Synaptic loss is the major neuropathological correlate of memory decline as a result of Alzheimer´s Disease (AD). Synaptic failure appears to depend on the toxic actions of small and soluble amyloid-β (Aβ) oligomers. However, few studies have addressed the mechanism by which aging makes synapses more vulnerable to Aβ toxicity. In the present study we analyzed mitochondrial function and morphology and markers o Read More

Alzheimer's disease (AD) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are the most common types of dementia in the presenile population. Episodic memory impairment, the clinical hallmark of AD, can also be encountered in patients with FTD, complicating accurate diagnosis. Several studies in FTD have correlated memory deficits with neuroimaging findings, but lacked to compare neuroimaging results in FTD patients with and Read More

Midlife habits may be important for the later development of Alzheimer's disease (AD). We estimated the contribution of midlife prayer to the development of cognitive decline. In a door-to-door survey, residents aged ≥65 years were systematically evaluated in Arabic including medical history, neurological, cognitive examination, and a midlife leisure-activities questionnaire. Praying was assessed by the number of mont Read More