Forgetting a Lifetime: The Alzheimer’s Problem

Have you ever forgot why you walked into a room, or where you placed your car keys? Can you imagine if you began to forget everything you know? This idea may seem horrifying, but this is what Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) will do.
Alzheimer’s becomes more prevalent as aging progresses. With the advances in medicine that are being made, people are living longer. With that said, it makes sense that the number of people being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s is rising.
The baby boomer generation is growing older, so the amount of people diagnosed with this disease will likely rise. Is it possible to find a cure for this disease before this epidemic of memory loss?
Research
As the prevalence of this disease increases, more research is being done. Research has shown that there may be multiple pathways in the brain involved in this disease. An article published in Experimental Gerontology discusses the significance of the PI3-kinase/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway.
The article reports that over activation of this PI3-kinase pathway could be a component of AD. If this pathway is not regulated there are multiple factors in the brain that won’t be able to do their job. This sustained activity could lead to insulin resistance in the brain and a buildup of harmful cells.
There is a transcription factor in the brain called FOXO that helps break down these harmful cells. The over activation of the PI3-kinase pathway inhibits FOXO, so it can no longer do its job. This lack of FOXO can contribute to the aging process.
Two well-known factors that contribute to Alzheimer’s is the presence of tangles and Aβ plaques. The tangles form when the protein tau is destabilized and no longer functions correctly. Even if these are present, there is no definitive way to diagnose Alzheimer’s until after death.
Treatment
There have been some treatments that have been developed for Alzheimer’s. Some of these include intranasal insulin therapies, and some small drugs that can reduce the presence of plaques in the brain.
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, the drugs available for this disease only slow down the effects of the symptoms. There is currently no cure for this disease.
Prevention
There have been studies to find out if there is anything individuals can do to prevent Alzheimer’s. There is evidence that suggests caloric restriction could be one way to reduce that chances of getting this disease (Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, 2016).
This leads to the question of how much it would take to get someone to change their lifestyle. If someone was told they have the possibility of developing a disease in 30 years, would it make someone want to change? That can be a difficult question to answer for many people.
Since preventative measures can be hard to instill, the focus should be on developing treatments. That is much easier said than done, but it is possible. Knowing the intricacies of the disease will help us find new innovative ways to cure the many people being afflicted.