Alteration of gene expression in Down's syndrome (DS) brains: its significance in neurodegeneration.
Several groups have reported pro-apoptotic alteration of gene expression in Down's syndrome (DS) brains. Aged DS brains manifest a similar neuropathology to Alzheimer's disease (AD), including the presence of senile plaques (SP) and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT). Although it is controversial if neurodegenerative processes play a pathological role in DS brains, evidence such as cortical neurons from fetal DS brains showing vulnerability to cell death when compared with neurons from control subjects supports this point of view. In this chapter, we review the reports that demonstrate pro-apoptotic alteration of gene expression in DS brains. In addition to the pathogenic genes on chromosome 21, such as amyloid precursor protein (APP) and CuZn-superoxide dismutase (SOD1), other genes which associate with p53, or with processes for protein folding have been frequently found.
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Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. akira@jhmi.edu
D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004314:Down Syndrome / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D015870:Gene Expression; D006801:Humans; D009410:Nerve Degeneration / Q000235:genetics* / Q000503:physiopathology