title: Neuroinflammation and common mechanism in Alzheimer's disease and prion amyloidosis: amyloid-associated proteins, neuroinflammation and neurofibrillary degeneration.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In cases with a long (>1 year) clinical duration of prion disease, the prion protein can form amyloid deposits. These cases do not show accumulation of 4-kDa β-amyloid, which is observed in amyloid deposits in Alzheimer's disease (AD). In AD, amyloid is associated with inflammation and neurofibrillary degeneration, and it is elusive whether prion amyloid is associated with these changes as well.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The presence of inflammation and neurofibrillary degeneration was evaluated in prion amyloidosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cortical areas of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD; n = 3), young sporadic CJD (n = 4), different Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker's disease patients (n = 5) and AD cases (n = 5) were examined using immunohistochemistry and specific stainings for amyloid.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In both AD and prion disease cases, which were negative for 4-kDa β-amyloid, parenchymal and vascular amyloid deposits were positive for amyloid-associated proteins such as complement protein and were associated with microglia clusters. Tau and ubiquitin were found near prion plaques in some of the Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker's disease and sporadic CJD cases and also near vascular prion amyloid deposits. In variant CJD cases, occasionally, microglia clustering was found in plaques but no ubiquitin or complement proteins and hardly tau protein.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In both AD and prion disease amyloid formation, irrespective of the protein involved, there seems to be a neuroinflammatory response with secondary neurofibrillary degeneration.
authors.affiliation: VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Annemieke J M
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Rozemuller
authors.forename: Casper
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jansen
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Carrano
authors.forename: Elise S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: van Haastert
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hondius
authors.forename: Saskia M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: van der Vies
authors.forename: Jeroen J M
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Hoozemans
mesh_terms: D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D058227:Amyloidogenic Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism*; D007562:Creutzfeldt-Jakob Syndrome / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016874:Neurofibrillary Tangles / Q000378:metabolism; D011180:Postmortem Changes; D016875:tau Proteins / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D058227:Amyloidogenic Proteins; D016875:tau Proteins