Glucose metabolism and Alzheimer's disease.

The brain is the organ with the highest basal rate of glucose consumption. Most of the energy generated by the oxidation of glucose is used for the work necessary to maintain the ionic balances associated with synaptic transmission. When the nervous system is subjected to the oxidative stress of age-associated disease, there is a redistribution of glucose breakdown to pathways that more efficiently produce molecules involved in antioxidant metabolism. This shift is at least in part mediated by the transcription factor HIF-1. The clinical implications of this change in glucose metabolism are discussed in the context of aging and Alzheimer's disease.