Ward Malcolm
Proteome Sciences plc, South Wing Laboratory (PO 045), Institute of Psychiatry, London, SE5 8AF, UK.
Expert Rev Mol Diagn. 2007 Sep;7(5):635-46. doi: 10.1586/14737159.7.5.635.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a horribly debilitating disease that will increase in prevalence as the populations of the USA and Europe continue to age. It is expected that the USA alone will see some 16 million cases by 2050. At present, there is no cure for the disease and early diagnosis is all but impossible. The onset of disease is not manifested clinically and little is known regarding the cause of nonfamiliar AD. There is a need for biomarkers associated with AD to aid the diagnosis of this disease and to detect progression. Especially needed are biomarkers to monitor the effect of new drugs and therapeutic strategies as they are developed. A biomarker may be a genetic trait, a biochemical change, such as a protein, peptide or metabolite, or a change in a structural or functional feature detected using imaging technology. This review aims to cover the important field of biomarker research in association with AD.
阿尔茨海默病（AD）是一种极其使人衰弱的疾病，随着美国和欧洲人口持续老龄化，其患病率将会上升。预计到2050年，仅美国就将出现约1600万病例。目前，这种疾病无法治愈，而且几乎不可能进行早期诊断。该疾病的发作在临床上并无表现，对于散发性AD的病因也知之甚少。需要有与AD相关的生物标志物来辅助这种疾病的诊断并检测其进展。尤其需要生物标志物来监测新药和治疗策略在研发过程中的效果。生物标志物可以是一种遗传特征、一种生化变化（如蛋白质、肽或代谢物），或者是使用成像技术检测到的结构或功能特征的变化。本综述旨在涵盖与AD相关的生物标志物研究这一重要领域。
