Messer William S
Department of Pharmacology, The University of Toledo, 2801 W. Bancroft St., Toledo, OH, 43606, USA.
Curr Top Med Chem. 2002 Apr;2(4):353-8. doi: 10.2174/1568026024607553.
Over the past decade, considerable effort was focused on the development of muscarinic and nicotinic agonists for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. The rationale for developing muscarinic agonists was based on the role of acetylcholine in learning and memory function and the consistent neurochemical finding that cholinergic neurons degenerated in Alzheimer's patients. Thus far, the clinical utility of muscarinic agonists remains unproven, yet recent studies suggest that muscarinic agonists might be useful in treating not only memory deficits, but also psychiatric disturbances and some of the underlying causes of Alzheimer's disease, such as the deposition of Abeta. In addition, nicotinic receptors may play a role in cognitive function and help regulate the toxicity of amyloid precursor protein. Ultimately, cholinergic agonists may prove useful in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
在过去十年中，人们投入了大量精力来开发用于治疗阿尔茨海默病的毒蕈碱能和烟碱能激动剂。开发毒蕈碱能激动剂的理论依据是乙酰胆碱在学习和记忆功能中的作用，以及一致的神经化学研究结果，即阿尔茨海默病患者的胆碱能神经元会退化。到目前为止，毒蕈碱能激动剂的临床效用尚未得到证实，但最近的研究表明，毒蕈碱能激动剂不仅可能有助于治疗记忆缺陷，还可能有助于治疗精神障碍以及阿尔茨海默病的一些潜在病因，如β淀粉样蛋白的沉积。此外，烟碱受体可能在认知功能中发挥作用，并有助于调节淀粉样前体蛋白的毒性。最终，胆碱能激动剂可能被证明对治疗阿尔茨海默病有用。
