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Alzheimer pathology during the past 100 years
Author(s) -
YAMAGUCHI Haruyasu
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
psychogeriatrics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.647
H-Index - 32
eISSN - 1479-8301
pISSN - 1346-3500
DOI - 10.1111/j.1479-8301.2007.00214.x
Subject(s) - senile plaques , dementia , pathology , amyloid (mycology) , alzheimer's disease , medicine , senile dementia , neuropathology , psychology , neuroscience , gerontology , disease
In the present review, I look back upon the 100‐year history of Alzheimer pathology. The significance of senile plaque formation was shown in the early 1900s, but was argued further in the 1990s after the identification of β‐amyloid protein. Neuropathological studies on a large number of brains from both non‐demented and demented subjects demonstrated the process of transformation from normal aging to Alzheimer‐type dementia, which includes both the presenile and senile form. Recently, lifestyle issues, such as food, exercise and environment, have been shown to influence Alzheimer pathology (plaque and tangles) in the brains of experimental animals. Such studies are expected to contribute to the eventual development of a curative treatment for Alzheimer‐type dementia.