alzheimer's disease Flashcards
what kind of disorder is AD
terminal and progressive
degenerative
state symptoms of AD
decline of memory
deficits of attention
personality changes q
what are the final symptoms of AD
poor swallowing and loss of bladder control
state immediate symptoms of AD
confusion and anxiety
what is MMSE
mini mental state examination
how is the MMSE used
patient asked to complete several tasks
score formed from performance
what does the MMSE diagnose
possible cog impairment - PP would need further testing for diagnosis
state changes in the neuropathology of a person with AD
hippocampus shrinks
enlarged ventricles
shrinkage of cerebral cortex
define neuropathology
brain anatomy
what are amyloid plaques
lumps of scar tissue made of degenerating neurons and the protein amyloid
how does an alpha beta plaque form
amyloid precursor is broken down by enzymes
alpha and beta stick together to from plaque
what is the genetic explanation of AD
result of mutations of amyloid precursor protein
define transgenic
introduce genes of another species to another animal
how can we study amyloid plaques
make transgenic mice
describe the process of making transgenic mice
gene mutation that promotes build up of amyloid injected into animal
what would occur in the offspring of transgenic mice (mice have gene mutation for growth of amyloid
offspring would also have gene mutation of amyloid
offspring produce similar brain to AD human patients
what is the similarity with AD human patients and transgenic mice who have amyloid gene mutation
both produce similar brain activity of AD
what is a high concentration of amyloid plaques associated with
neuron loss and memory disturbances
which brain region can have a high concentration of amyloid plaques
medial temporal love
what would happen if you inject animals with TAU gene
neurofibrillary tangles would be displayed
what are neurofibrillary tangles
TAU protein
what are microtubules
sticks - part of exoskeleton which forms shape
what does the term MAP stand for
microtubule associated proteins
how are neurofibrillary tangles formed
TAU becomes muddled and tangled up
microtubule degenerate and neuron die
what happens if the microtubule degenerates
neurons die
axons structure is no longer supported
what is apoE composed of
3 alleles of the same gene
E2, E3 E4
what characterisics of E4?
bad gene
increased risk factors
state characteristics of E2 gene
good gene
copies of this gene won’t increase risk factor
what is E4 involved for?
involved in transport of cholesterol
increase risk factor of heart disease
what things are prevalent in the medial temporal lobe
neuro tangles, amyloid plaques and neuron loss
state 2 drugs that treat AD symptoms
cholinetserase inhibitor
NDMA receptor
what effect does acetycholine have
reduce levels of AD in patients brain
what is the cause of anterograde amnesia
acetycholine depletion
what does the cholinergic system in AD patients result in
cell death and neuron loss
degeneration of basal ganglia
what does cholinesterase inhibit
cholinesterase
where is the main source of acetycholine
forebrain
what is the function of cholinesterase
enzyme that breaks down acetate and choline
what happens when glutamate becomes overexcited
cause an influx of calcium
explain the process of neural stem cell transplants to improve AD cognitions
- stem cells injected
- stem cells become neuron and glial cells
- stem cell partially resolve memory functions
what does the antagonist mematine (exiba) do?
block mematine and stop gluaminergic toxins
