Prescription of lipophilic statins to Alzheimer's disease patients: some controversies to consider.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common disorder causing cognitive decline in old age. It is a progressive and irreversible neuropathology with a diagnosis often missed or delayed. Cholesterol represents an important determinant of the physical state of biological membranes and in AD brains, specific changes in its membrane-ordering and Raft-organizing effects take place. A recent publication shows downregulation of Seladin-1 (selective Alzheimer's disease indicator, also called DHCR24), which catalyzes the last step of cholesterol biosynthesis in affected neurons in AD. Postmortem analysis of AD brains revealed a loss in membrane cholesterol content and this finding makes the therapeutical use of statins (especially the lipophilic ones) quite a lot controversial. Some clinical studies suggest that risk of Alzheimer's disease is substantially reduced in users of statins; however, because these studies are not randomized trials, they provide insufficient evidence to recommend statin family therapy.
Facoltà di Scienze Biologiche, Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Accademia Albertina 13, 10123, Turin, Italy. 173466@studenti.unito.it
Elisa
E
Biondi
D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D050356:Lipid Metabolism / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors