Download Alzheimer’s Disease -> The Disease of Darkness

Alzheimer’s Disease -> The
Disease of Darkness
Varun Doshi
Alzheimer’s Disease
• Alzheimer’s Disease
is a FATAL
progressive
degenerative
disorder that
attacks brain nerve
cells, or neurons,
resulting in the loss
of memory,
thinking, language
skills, and behavior.
Alzheimer’s – Who is Affected?
• Older people are
affected. Chances of
getting Disease increases
with 65 + age.
• Family history plays a big
role in disease
development
• Comes in three stages,
diagnosed second most
of the time.
Inside the Human Brain
To understand Alzheimer’s
disease, it’s important to know a
bit about the brain…
The Brain’s Vital Statistics
•Adult weight:
about 3 pounds
•Adult size:
a medium cauliflower
•Number of neurons:
100,000,000,000
(100 billion)
•Number of synapses
(the gap between neurons):
(100 trillion)
Inside the Human
Brain
The Three Main Players
1.Cerebral Hemispheres
2.Cerebellum
3.Brain Stem
Inside the Human Brain
Neurons
• To stay healthy, neurons must
communicate with each other,
carry out metabolism, and repair
themselves.
• AD disrupts all three of these
essential jobs.
Stages of AD
Stage One:
Warning Signs!
-Difficulty with familiar tasks
-Memory Loss ( most commonly known)
-Language Difficulty
-Disorientation
-Mood/Behavioral/Personality change
-Misplacing objects, & cannot trace their steps
-Difficulty of harder thinking
-Poor Judgment
Stage Two :
NURSING HOME
- Increase in memory loss
- Shortened Attention Span
- Difficulty in recognizing Loved ones
- Difficulty learning new things
- Difficulty organizing thoughts
- Reduced Impulse control ( walking, eating, etc.)
Stage Three
BACK TO INFANCY
-Entire Loss of language, memory, bladder, bowel, and
physical coordination
-Difficulty Swallowing
-Noise Making, CANNOT SPEAK
-Weight Loss. Usually severe…cannot eat!
-Increased Sleeping
* DEATH RESULTS IN THE INABILITY TO EAT, USE THE
BATHROOM, AND BREATHE.
AD and the Brain
Plaques and Tangles: The Hallmarks of AD
The brains of people with AD have an abundance of two
abnormal structures:
• beta-amyloid plaques, which are dense deposits of
protein and cellular material that accumulate outside
and around nerve cells
• neurofibrillary tangles, which are twisted fibers that
build up inside the nerve cell
An actual AD tangle
Slide 16
AD and the Brain
Beta-amyloid Plaques
1.
Amyloid precursor protein (APP) is the
precursor to amyloid plaque.
1. APP sticks through the neuron
membrane.
2.
3.
2. Enzymes cut the APP into
fragments
of protein, including
beta-amyloid.
3. Beta-amyloid fragments come
together
in clumps to form
plaques.
In AD, many of these clumps form,
disrupting the work of neurons. This
affects the hippocampus and other
areas of the cerebral cortex.
AD and the
Brain
Neurofibrillary
Tangles
Neurons have an internal support structure partly made up of
microtubules. A protein called tau helps stabilize microtubules. In
AD, tau changes, causing microtubules to collapse, and tau
proteins clump together to form neurofibrillary tangles.
TREATMENT OF ALZHEIMERS
DRUGS USED
• ACHIEs
-Donepezil
– Rivastigmine
– Galantamine
38 weeks
38–42 weeks
52 weeks
INTRANSAL INSULIN
NANOTECHNOLOGY
STEM CELLS

Stem cells could, can be
genetically modified so as to
deliver substances to the
Alzheimer brain, to stop cells
from dying and stimulate the
function of existing cells. A
recent clinical trial (Phase I)
has shown this approach to
be of some benefit to
patients with Alzheimer’s
disease, by slowing down the
progression of the disease.
REFRENCES
• BOOKS- K.D Tripathi , Rang and Dale
• WEB
http://www.alz.org/alzheimers_disease_what
_is_alzheimers.asp
www.HealthyYears.org ,www.alzheimers.org
www.alz.org/10signs
http://www.medicinenet.com/alzheimers_dise
ase_causes_stages_and_symptoms/article.
htm