A diet containing compounds found in green tea and carrots reversed Alzheimer's-like symptoms in mice genetically programmed to develop the disease. The two compounds were EGCG (epigallocatechin-3-gallate), a key ingredient in green tea, and FA (ferulic acid), which is found in carrots, tomatoes, rice, wheat and oats.
A mouse study has found that canola oil in the diet was associated with worsened memory, worsened learning ability, and weight gain in Alzheimer's mice.
Canola oil-treated animals also had greatly reduced levels of amyloid beta 1-40 (the “good” version), leading to more amyloid-beta plaques (made from amyloid beta 1-42), and a significant decrease in synapses.
The mice were given the equivalent of about two tablespoons of canola oil daily. The mice began their enriched diet at 6 months of age, before they developed any signs of Alzheimer's.
A 10-year South Korean study using data from 262,349 older adults (50+) has found that those with chronic periodontitis had a 6% higher risk for dementia than did people without periodontitis. This connection was true despite behaviors such as smoking, consuming alcohol, and remaining physically active.
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-03/ags-pmr031519.php
A mouse study has shown that, as cells age, their ability to remove damaged proteins and structures declines.
The process of waste management, called autophagy, involves a component within the cell (an autophagosome) engulfing misfolded proteins or damaged structures (putting them in a garbage bag, essentially). The autophagosome then fuses with a second cellular structure, called a lysosome, that contains the enzymes needed to breakdown the garbage, allowing the components to be recycled and reused.
Data from the Framingham Heart Study has found carriers of the ApoE4 gene were much more likely to develop Alzheimer’s if they also had chronic low-grade inflammation. Indeed, the researchers suggest that, in the absence of inflammation, there might be no difference of Alzheimer's risk between ApoE4 and non-ApoE4 carriers.
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2018-10/buso-lfb101818.php
A two-year study which involved metabolic testing of 50 people, suggests that Alzheimer's disease consists of three distinct subtypes, each one of which may need to be treated differently. The finding may help explain why it has been so hard to find effective treatments for the disease.
The subtypes are:
A post-mortem study of five Alzheimer's and five control brains has revealed the presence of iron-containing microglia in the subiculum of the Alzheimer's brains only. The subiculum lies within the hippocampus, a vital memory region affected early in Alzheimer's. None of the brains of those not diagnosed with Alzheimer's had the iron deposits or the microglia, in that brain region, while four of the five Alzheimer's brains contained the iron-containing microglia.
A comparison of Alzheimer’s prevalence across the world using 'age-standardized' data (which predict Alzheimer's rates if all countries had the same population birth rate, life expectancy and age structure) has found a strong correlation between national sanitation levels and Alzheimer's, with better hygiene associated with higher rates of Alzheimer’s.
Analysis of post-mortem with and without dementia has found lipopolysaccharide, a component of an oral bacterium (Porphyromonas gingivalis), in four out of 10 Alzheimer’s disease brain samples, but not in any of the 10 brains of people who didn’t have Alzheimer’s.
Gingivitis is extremely common, and about 64% of American seniors (65+) have moderate or severe periodontal disease.
The finding adds to evidence linking gum disease and Alzheimer’s.
See also Inflammation & infection
Although it has long been theorized that inflammation plays a role in the development of Alzheimer’s, repeated studies have failed to find consistent evidence that anti-inflammatory drugs are helpful. Now a brain tissue study reveals that supporting brain cells called microglia are not activated in the presence of tau tangles in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients, as has been predicted, and as would be the case if there were inflammation. Instead, microglia are degenerating. It’s suggested that it is this loss of microglia that contributes to the loss of neurons, and thus to the development of dementia. The next step is to find out why the microglia are dying.
Streit, W.J. et al. 2009. Dystrophic (senescent) rather than activated microglial cells are associated with tau pathology and likely precede neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s disease. Acta Neuropathologica, Published online ahead of print.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-06/uof-pat061509.php
Data from the Framingham Heart Study has found that those with the highest amount of cytokines (protein messengers that trigger inflammation) in their blood were more than twice as likely to develop Alzheimer's disease as those with the lowest amount of cytokines, providing further evidence that inflammation plays a role in the development of Alzheimer's disease.
Tan, Z.S. et al. 2007. Inflammatory markers and the risk of Alzheimer disease: The Framingham Study. Neurology, 68, 1902-1908.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-05/aaon-bip052107.php
A new study of dementia in identical twins suggests that exposure to inflammation early in life quadruples one's risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. The study involved sifting the 20,000 participants in the Swedish Twin Registry for the 109 "discordant" pairs where only one twin had been diagnosed with dementia. Answers to health questions in the survey enabled the researchers to build a crude indicator of periodontal disease, measured indirectly by teeth lost or loose. Because this is not a direct measure of inflammation, the results need to be confirmed, but they do suggest that an inflammatory burden early in life, as represented by chronic gum disease, may have severe consequences later. The study also found that mental activities at age 40 did not seem to lower the risk of developing Alzheimer's, and the level of education was not a large factor once genes were taken into account (nevertheless, those with less high school and college education had 1.6 times the risk of dementia). Previous studies have shown that Alzheimer's is strongly genetic: If one twin has the disease, his or her identical twin has a 60% chance of developing it.
The study was presented at the first Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Prevention of Dementia, to be held June 18-21 in Washington, D.C.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-06/uosc-adl061605.php
A study has found that people with Alzheimer’s disease have three to four times more antibodies to RAGE (receptor for advanced glycation end products) and beta amyloid — both major players in Alzheimer’s — than their healthy counterparts. The ability to measure these specific antibody levels could lead to a method for very early diagnosis. The finding may also point to a new treatment approach. The study supports the theory that autoimmunity and resulting inflammation play a big role in Alzheimer’s.
Mruthinti, S., Buccafusco, J.J., Hill, W.D., Waller, J.L., Jackson, T.W., Zamrini, E.Y. & Schade, R.F. 2004. Autoimmunity in Alzheimer’s disease: increased levels of circulating IgGs binding Ab and RAGE peptides. Neurobiology of Aging, 25 (8), 1023-1032.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-06/mcog-adi060204.php
A new theory about the cause of Alzheimer's disease has been proposed. According to this theory, Alzheimer’s arises as a consequence of inflammation, which creates abnormal metabolites out of normal brain molecules. These abnormal metabolites then modify "amyloid beta" proteins in the brain and cause them to misfold, thus accumulating into the fibrils and plaques characteristic of the disease. The inflammation process that creates these metabolites can be triggered by numerous stimuli, including infections that precede the onset of Alzheimer's disease by a significant amount of time — perhaps years. Traumatic head injuries, for example, are a major risk factor for later developing Alzheimer's disease. Inflammation is increasingly seen as playing a role in neurodegenerative diseases.
Zhang, Q., Powers, E.T., Nieva, J., Huff, M.E., Dendle, M.A., Bieschke, J., Glabe, C.G., Eschenmoser, A., Wentworth, P.Jr., Lerner, R.A. & Kelly, J.W. 2004. Metabolite-initiated protein misfolding may trigger Alzheimer's disease. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 101 (14), 4752-7.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2004-03/sri-anh031504.php