Alzheimer's Disease Flashcards
Dementia is characterized by what?
Progressive memory impairment and at least one of:
Aphasia
Agnosia
Apraxia
Executive function disturbance
What is Alzheimer’s type dementia?
Primary dementia, progressive, irreversible
What are the key charatceristics of AD?
Global atrophy that is most pronounced in the hippocampus, temporal and frontal lobes
Enlarged lateral and 3rd ventricles
What is the first area to show pronounced neuronal loss?
Entorhinal cortex Area 28
What type of neuron does neurodegeneration affect the most?
Cholinergic neurons
E.g. Nucleus basalis of Meynert
Degeneration of the hippocampus results in what?
Decline in working memory, short-term, and eventually long-term memory
Degeneration of the nucleus basilis of meynart results in what?
Impaired selective attention, cortical activation and memory processes
Degeneration of the nucleus locus coeruleus results in what?
Diminished arousal, deficits in selective attention, disruption of pain and stress response, and mood
What are the 5 A’s of AD?
Anomia - deficit in expressive language
Aphasia - deterioration of language
Apraxia
Agnosia
Amnesia
What are the two major pathophysiological hallmarks of AD?
Tau neurofibrillary tangles
Beta amyloid senile plaques
What causes neurofibrillary tangles?
Hyperphosphorylation of Tau
What is granulavacuolar degneration and gliosis?
Granulovacuolar degeneration - generation of fluid filled space and granular debris within neurons
Gliosis - reactive microglia and astrocytes
What causes amyloid plaques?
Accumulation and aggregation of amyloid-B
What genetic factors result in early-onset AD?
Presenilin 1 and 2 genes on chromosome 21
Mutations in B-amyloid precursor protein
What genetic factors result in late-onset AD?
Apolipoprotein (APOE4 gene)
ABCA7 gene
Both involved in lipid metabolism
