Inflammation of the nerves is the main cause of the development of the disease - the practice of healing

How does Alzheimer’s disease progress?

The role that so-called neuroinflammation plays in the development of Alzheimer’s disease was investigated in a recent study – and the result was quite surprising. Neuroinflammation appears to be the primary cause of the proliferation of pathologically malformed proteins in the brain and cause of cognitive impairment in people with Alzheimer’s disease.

For the first time, it was discovered that neuroinflammation – the activation of immune cells found in the brain, known as glia – is not just a consequence of the development of Alzheimer’s disease. Instead, it’s an important upstream mechanism that underlies the disease’s development, according to researchers from the University of Pittsburgh on the results of their current study. The study was published in the English Language Journal.nature medicinePosted.

What happens in the brain when you have Alzheimer’s disease?

Alzheimer’s disease It is characterized by the accumulation of so-called amyloid plaques in the brain. These are protein aggregates that are deposited between nerve cells in the brain. Another characteristic of Alzheimer’s is so-called tau tangles or tau protein deposits, which form inside neurons, according to the team.

Although studies in cultured cells and laboratory animals have already provided a lot of evidence that activation of microglia leads to proliferation of tau fibers in Alzheimer’s disease, this process has not yet been demonstrated in humans, according to the researchers.

Restraining nerve inflammation to prevent dementia

Study results suggest that targeted control of neuroinflammation is beneficial for people with early Alzheimer’s disease and can help reverse or at least slow the buildup of pathological tau protein in the brain and prevent dementia, experts report. press release Abbey University of Pittsburgh College of Medicine.

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Neuroinflammation is more common in people with Alzheimer’s disease

To determine the exact mechanism by which disturbed ganglion of tau protein fibers and amyloid plaques spread in the brain and lead to dementia, experts have used live imaging to examine the brains of people who are already in various stages of Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, the brains of healthy elderly people were examined.

The team found that neuroinflammation was more common in the elderly and was more pronounced in people with mild cognitive impairment and those with dementia associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

Dew proliferation depends on microglia

Bioinformatics analyzes also confirmed that tau proliferation depends on microglia activation, a key component linking the effects of amyloid plaque accumulation to tau proliferation and ultimately with cognitive impairment and dementia.

Amyloid plaques do not always lead to Alzheimer’s disease

Dr. explains. Pascual. It is known that amyloid accumulation alone is not sufficient to cause dementia, and new findings now suggest that “it is the interaction between neuroinflammation and amyloid pathology that causes tau proliferation and ultimately severe brain damage and cognitive impairment.”

Advantages of combination therapy

According to study author Dr. Based on the results of the current study, Tharick Pascoal can also hypothesize that a combination therapy, aimed at reducing the formation of amyloid plaques and containing neuroinflammation, can be more effective than a separate treatment for both diseases. (as)

Author and source information

Resources:

  • Tharick A. Pascoal, Andrea L. Benedet, Nicholas J. Ashton, Min Su Kang, Joseph Therriault, et al: microglia activation and tau proliferation together through Brac stages; In: Nature (veröffentlicht 26.08.2021), temper nature
  • University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine: Inflammation of brain tissue leads to Alzheimer’s disease (veröffentlicht 26.08.2021), University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

important note:
This article is for general guidance only and is not intended to be used for self-diagnosis or self-treatment. It cannot replace a visit to the doctor.

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