The relation between the menopause transition with higher rates of Alzheimer in the female gender: a literature review

The reproductive senescence and the complete exhaustion of the germ cells result in processes capable of provoking changes in the hormone profile of women. The decrease in the bioenergetic metabolism during the menopause transition (MT), due to modifications in the estrogen levels, can be substrate for neurological dysfunctions. The physiopathological mechanisms of the Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) are activated years before the symptoms and coincide with MT, making the female gender a risk factor. The review aims on analyzing the higher rates of AD in the female gender, based on physiological changes that occur in the MT. Methods: Literature review based on articles from the PubMed database. Results: Were compared results from cerebral images of women in MT with cognitively normal men with the same age. In the women were found alterations such as abnormalities in the biomarkers of AD and reduction of the cerebral metabolic rate. It was noticed that women in the post menopause presented hypometabolism in the same cerebral regions as patients with AD and a reduction of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase of the platelets. Conclusion: The study presented evident bioenergetic factors that corroborate to the relation of MT and higher incidence of AD in the female gender. This way, such transition represents a window of opportunity for possible therapeutic interventions.