Pathophysiology of Hypoperfusion of the Precuneus in Early Alzheimer's Disease.

ABSTRACT: The earliest decline in cerebral perfusion in Alzheimer's disease (AD) is in the medial parietal cortex (precuneus). We have analyzed precuneus in post-mortem tissue from 70 AD and 37 control brains to explore the pathophysiology of the hypoperfusion: the contribution of arteriolosclerotic small vessel disease (SVD) and cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), and of the vasoconstrictors endothelin-1 (EDN1) and angiotensin II (Ang II), and the association with Aβ. The myelin-associated glycoprotein:proteolipid protein-1 ratio (MAG:PLP1) was used as an indicator of oxygenation of the precuneus prior to death. MAG:PLP1 was reduced ∼50% in early AD (Braak stage III-IV). Although MAG:PLP1 remained low in advanced AD (stage V-VI), the reduction was less pronounced, possibly reflecting falling oxygen

SUBMITTER: Miners JS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4982069 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature