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Atherosclerosis and Alzheimer--diseases with a common cause? Inflammation, oxysterols, vasculature

Richard Lathe1, Alexandra Sapronova, Yuri Kotelevtsev

  • 1State University of Pushchino, Prospekt Nauki, Pushchino 142290, Moscow Region, Russia. rlathe@pieta-research.org.

BMC Geriatrics
|March 25, 2014
PubMed

Insights

Atherosclerosis and Alzheimer's disease may stem from a shared inflammatory origin. Chronic immune responses activate cholesterol metabolism, leading to vascular issues and disease progression in both conditions.

Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Pathology
  • Vascular Biology

Background:

  • Aging increases susceptibility to atherosclerosis (ATH) and Alzheimer's disease (AD).
  • The relationship between ATH and AD, whether distinct or sharing a common cause, remains an area of investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the potential shared pathoetiology underlying atherosclerosis and Alzheimer's disease.
  • To explore the role of immune responses and cholesterol metabolism in the development of both conditions.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of shared genetic predispositions (e.g., APOE variants).
  • Examination of the role of inflammation, macrophage infiltration, and infection (viral/bacterial) in both diseases.
  • Investigating the function of cholesterol 25-hydroxylase (CH25H) and its product 25-hydroxycholesterol (25OHC) in disease pathogenesis.

Main Results:

  • Both ATH and AD feature inflammation, macrophage infiltration, and vascular occlusion.
  • Chronic immune activation leads to CH25H upregulation, producing 25OHC.
  • 25OHC activates ACAT, causing cholesteryl ester accumulation, lipid droplets, and vascular issues.

Conclusions:

  • ATH and AD may represent different clinical outcomes of a common underlying pathoetiology driven by chronic immune challenge.
  • CH25H induction provides defense against infections but contributes to long-term pathology in both ATH and AD.
  • Targeting shared inflammatory and metabolic pathways shows promise for treating both conditions.
Abstract

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