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What is Alzheimer's Disease?
What is Alzheimer's Disease?
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and cognitive skills.
Symptoms include memory loss, language problems, and unpredictable behavior.
AD results in loss of neuronal connections and progressive degeneration and/or death of neurons. Once the function of these neurons is lost there is no known way to regain function.
Morphological changes of the brain include amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary, and decrease hippocampal volume.
This damage initially takes place in the parts of the brain involved in memory: the entrohinal cortex and hippocampus.
(U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.)
Recommended Alzheimer's Disease Prevention from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Include:
Recommended Alzheimer's Disease Prevention from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Include:
Cognitive Training
Cognitive Training
Includes structures activities designed to enhance memory, reasoning, and speed of processing.
Blood Pressure Control
Blood Pressure Control
Control of blood pressure can help prevent the vascular damage in the brain related to AD.
Exercise
Exercise
Studies suggest that people who exercise experience lower levels of cognitive decline. Currently ,there is not enough evidence that exercise prevents AD but rather exercise may delay cognitive decline.
Overview:
Overview:
After conducting a preliminary on AD I want to explore the possible role exercise plays in AD prevention. This project examines the neuroprotective effect of exercise on the hippocampus demonstrating the potentially beneficial effect of exercise on neurodegenerative diseases specifically Alzheimer's disease.
Research Question:
Research Question:
What is the mechanism for the neuroprotective effect of exercise and is this beneficial effect observed in the hippocampus?
What is the mechanism for the neuroprotective effect of exercise and is this beneficial effect observed in the hippocampus?
Connection of Exercise to Alzheimer's Disease Prevention
Connection of Exercise to Alzheimer's Disease Prevention
Aerobic exercise increases the production of growth factors such as Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) and Insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) leading to the protection of existing neurons and neurogenesis. This project aims to clarify the connection of exercise to AD prevention by exploring the effect of IGF-1 on symptoms of AD in Figure Dissection 1 and Figure Dissection 2 explores the potential mechanistic pathway for BDNF to elicit neuroprotection and neurogenesis.
After exploring this website watch the TedTalk by Wendy Suzuki for additional inspiration to include exercise in your lifestyle. Additional resources regarding endurance workouts are located here.
References:
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2017. Preventing Cognitive Decline and Dementia: A Way Forward. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.https://doi.org/10.17226/24782.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Preventing alzheimer's disease: What do we know? National Institute on Aging. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/preventing-alzheimers-disease-what-do-we-know
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). What is alzheimer's disease? National Institute on Aging. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/what-alzheimers-disease
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