Alzheimer's centennial legacy: prospects for rational therapeutic intervention targeting the Abeta amyloid pathway.
It is now 100 years since the nosological definition of Alzheimer's disease emerged. In the first 80 years, very little progress was made in understanding the mechanisms that caused the brain to degenerate in a remarkably specific fashion (amyloid accumulation with neurofibrillary changes). Over the past 20 years, there has been an explosion of knowledge which continues today at an exponential rate. The molecular pathways underlying the synaptic dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease have delivered many validated therapeutic and diagnostic targets. A variety of therapeutic strategies aimed at disease modification are now in clinical development.
Masters
Colin L
CL
Department of Pathology, The University of Melbourne, 3010, Victoria, Australia. c.masters@unimelb.edu.au
Beyreuther
Konrad
K
D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology; D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides / Q000502:physiology*; D016564:Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor / Q000502:physiology; D002491:Central Nervous System Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D018377:Neurotransmitter Agents / Q000502:physiology; D058225:Plaque, Amyloid / Q000473:pathology; D058255:Protease Nexins; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000502:physiology; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000187:drug effects
D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides; D016564:Amyloid beta-Protein Precursor; D002491:Central Nervous System Agents; D018377:Neurotransmitter Agents; D058255:Protease Nexins; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface