title: Thiamine-dependent enzyme changes in temporal cortex of patients with Alzheimer's disease.
abstract: Activities of thiamine-dependent enzymes [pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDHC), alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase (alpha KGDH), and transketolase (TK)] were measured in autopsied samples of temporal cortex from six patients with Alzheimer's disease and from eight age-matched control subjects who were free from neurological or psychiatric diseases. Times from death to freezing of dissected material at -70 degrees C were matched. Significant decreases in PDHC (decreased by 70%; P less than 0.01), alpha KGDH (decreased by 70%; p less than 0.01), and TK (decreased by 52%; P less than 0.01) were observed in brain tissue from patients with Alzheimer's disease. In contrast, activities of glutamate dehydrogenase were within normal limits. These findings suggest a possible role for alterations of brain thiamine metabolism or utilization in Alzheimer's disease.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neurochemistry, André-Viallet Clinical Research Center, Hôpital St-Luc (University of Montreal), Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: R F
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Butterworth
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Besnard
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000201:enzymology*; D005260:Female; D005969:Glutamate Dehydrogenase / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007655:Ketoglutarate Dehydrogenase Complex / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011768:Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Complex / Q000378:metabolism*; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000201:enzymology*; D014174:Transketolase / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D011768:Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Complex; D007655:Ketoglutarate Dehydrogenase Complex; D005969:Glutamate Dehydrogenase; D014174:Transketolase