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- Rönnemaa, Elina, 1975-
(författare)
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Predictors of Dementia : Insulin, Fatty Acids and Vascular Risk Factors
- 2012
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Identification of modifiable risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is crucial in order to diminish suffering from this devastating disease. The aim of this thesis was to investigate if different aspects of glucose metabolism, insulin, fatty-acid composition or other vascular risk factors predict the future development of AD and dementia. This thesis is based on the Uppsala Longitudinal Study of Adult Men (ULSAM) cohort, which started in 1970. A total of 2322 men at age 50 were examined with focus on vascular risk factors. The cohort was re-examined at ages 60, 71, 77, 82 and 88. Incident diagnoses of AD, vascular dementia, other dementias and cognitive impairment were assessed in 2005–2010. The risk of AD was increased in subjects with lower early insulin response measured with both an intravenous glucose tolerance test at 50 years and an oral glucose tolerance test at 71 years of age. The presence of vascular risk factors such as hypertension, obesity, hypercholesterolemia and smoking increased the risk of future vascular dementia but not of AD. Furthermore, saturated fatty acids at midlife were inversely associated with risk of AD. No evidence of a protective effect of omega-3 fatty acids against dementia was found. The susceptibility allele, APOE ε4, was the strongest individual risk factor. APOE ε4 carriers with vascular risk factors had the greatest risk of developing dementia. Low insulin response was a risk factor for AD mainly in APOE ε4 non-carriers. Disturbances in insulin and glucose metabolism, vascular risk factors and fatty acids are linked differentially to the pathogenesis of AD and vascular dementia. These observations should be considered when future clinical approaches are planned to prevent and postpone the onset of dementia.
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| 2. |
- Sundelöf, Johan, 1974-
(författare)
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Amyloid β-protein, Cystatin C and Cathepsin B as Biomarkers of Alzheimer's Disease
- 2010
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- It is suggested that Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is caused by an imbalance between production, degradation and clearance of the amyloid-β (Aβ) protein. This imbalance leads to aggregation of Aβ and tau proteins and neurodegeneration in the brain. Today there is increasing evidence that the balance between the protease cathepsin B and the protease inhibitor cystatin C affects the tendency for Aβ to aggregate. The primary aim of this thesis was to investigate Aβ, cystatin C and cathepsin B levels in blood and cerebro-spinal fluid (CSF) in relation to the risk of AD.Studies I & II were based on the re-examinations of participants, at ages 70 and 77, in the Uppsala Longitudinal Study of Adult Men (ULSAM), a community-based prospective study initiated in 1970 (participants then being 50 years of age). In ULSAM, low plasma Aβ1-40 (Study I) and low serum cystatin C levels (Study II) were associated with a higher risk of AD. Studies III & IV were based on a cross-sectional sample of people with AD, mild cognitive impairment and healthy controls, recruited at three Swedish Memory Disorder units: Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Skåne University Hospital, Malmö, and Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Stockholm. In Study III, CSF cystatin C levels were positively correlated with both Aβ1-42 and tau levels. In Study IV, individuals with AD had higher mean plasma cathepsin B levels than healthy controls.In conclusion, low plasma Aβ1-40 and low serum cystatin C levels may precede clinically manifest AD in elderly men, cystatin C levels are positively correlated with Aβ1-42 and tau levels in CSF, and mean plasma cathepsin B levels are higher in people with AD compared to healthy controls. In addition to Aβ1-42 and tau levels in CSF, Aβ1-40, cystatin C and cathepsin B levels in blood may reflect the risk of AD.
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