J Korean Med Assoc.  2009 Nov;52(11):1059-1068. 10.5124/jkma.2009.52.11.1059.

Novel Pharmacotherapies for Alzheimer's Disease

• Han SH

• KMID: 2188088
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5124/jkma.2009.52.11.1059

Abstract

Alzheimer disease (AD) is pathologically characterized by extracellular amyloid deposits composed of beta-amyloid (A beta) peptide, neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) made up of hyperphosphorylated tau, and deficit of cholinergic neurons in the basal forebrain. It is the most common neurodegenerative disease in the elderly. With the aging of the population, the incidence and prevalence of AD will also increase rapidly. The subsequent growing socioeconomic burden seems to be inevitable until effective therapeutic strategies are developed. Currently available treatments approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, while ameliorating the symptoms, do not halt progression or cure the illness. AD is a multifactorial syndrome with several target proteins contributing to its etiology. In this review, various small molecules targeting pathological hall marks or their major constituents that have been reported in the literature will be discussed, with emphasis on compounds that are presently being investigated in clinical trials.

Keyword

Alzheimer's disease (AD); Disease modifying therapy; Amyloid; Hyperphosphorylated tau

MeSH Terms

Aged
Aging
Alzheimer Disease
Amyloid
Cholinergic Neurons
Humans
Incidence
Neurodegenerative Diseases
Neurofibrillary Tangles
Plaque, Amyloid
Prevalence
Prosencephalon
Proteins
United States Food and Drug Administration
Amyloid
Proteins

Figure

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  Figure 1 The amyloid cascade hypothesis of Alzheimer's disease. Aβ, amyloid beta protein; NFT, neurofibrillary tangle

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  Figure 2 Proteolytic processing of the b-amyloid precursor protein.

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  Figure 3 Chemical structure of resveratrol.

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