title: N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor and apoptosis in Alzheimer's disease and multiinfarct dementia.
abstract: This study investigates the role of excitotoxicity in Alzheimer's disease and in multiinfarct dementia by examining, via immunohistochemical methods, the number of cells that are positive for N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor and the degree of colocalization between NMDA receptor and apoptosis markers such as TUNEL or activated caspase-3 in the frontal cortex of individuals with these two conditions, comparing the results with those from subjects who died of normal aging. We showed an increased number of NMDA receptor-positive cells and an increased number of TUNEL-labeled cells in the frontal cortex of subjects with Alzheimer's disease, especially in the deeper layers of the cortex. However, only about 10% of cells showed colocalization of NMDA receptor with the apoptosis markers studied, suggesting that NMDA-mediated excitotoxicity does not play a major role in neuronal apoptosis in Alzheimer's disease or in multiinfarct dementia.
authors.affiliation: The Institute of Cellbiology, Medical College of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Marong
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.forename: Jicheng
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Tiu
authors.forename: Lihong
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Mingwei
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: David T
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Yew
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology*; D053148:Caspase 3; D020169:Caspases / Q000378:metabolism; D053938:DNA Fragmentation / Q000502:physiology; D015161:Dementia, Multi-Infarct / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D020287:In Situ Nick-End Labeling; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000378:metabolism*; D012016:Reference Values; D014018:Tissue Distribution
chemical_list: D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; C505407:CASP3 protein, human; D053148:Caspase 3; D020169:Caspases