THURSDAY, July 16 (HealthDay News) -- Inflammation and a transport protein at the blood-brain barrier affect the passage of the amyloid-β (Aβ) peptide implicated in Alzheimer's disease across the blood-brain barrier, according to a study in the May issue of Brain, Behavior, and Immunity and a study in the third 2009 issue of the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.
In the study in Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, Laura B. Jaeger, Ph.D., from the Saint Louis University School of Medicine, and colleagues examined whether inflammation altered the passage of Aβ peptide across the blood-brain barrier in mice. They found that inflammation increased influx and decreased efflux of Aβ into the brain, where only efflux was blocked by a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug.
In another study in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, Jaeger and colleagues examined whether blocking expression of low density lipoprotein receptor related protein-1 (LRP1), the major transporter of Aβ across the blood-brain barrier, affected Aβ clearance. They found that the treatment decreased clearance of Aβ from the brain and impaired learning ability and recognition memory.
"These results support dysfunction of LRP1 at the blood-brain barrier as a mechanism by which brain levels of Aβ could increase and Alzheimer's disease would be promoted," Jaeger and colleagues conclude.
Abstract
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Abstract
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