Cambridge Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Group, CIDDRG, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
J Neuroendocrinol. 2011 May;23(5):450-5. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2826.2011.02118.x.
People with Down's syndrome (DS) are at high risk of developing early onset dementia. Recent studies suggest a link between age-related decreases in dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) concentrations and dementia in the general population. The present study investigates the relationship between DHEA serum levels and age and the risk of dementia in adults with DS. The DHEA plasma concentrations of 67 adults with DS and 65 age-matched controls were determined. Participants with DS were assessed for the presence of dementia using the CAMDEX informant interview. The DHEA plasma concentrations decreased with age in subjects with DS as well as in controls. Age significantly predicted DHEA levels in both groups (B = -0.06, t = -4.536, P < 0.001 in the DS group and B = -0.04, t = -2.928, P < 0.005 in control participants). The mean ± SD DHEA level was 3.47 ± 1.41 μmol/l in controls and 2.79 ± 1.24 μmol/l in participants with DS. This difference was significant (t = -2.981, P < 0.01). Within the DS population, ancova revealed a significant relationship between DHEA concentrations and dementia (F(1,65) = 4.348, P < 0.05). We found that DHEA levels declined significantly with age in people with DS and controls and were lower, in comparison to age-matched controls, in people with DS across all ages studied. Those with DS and evidence of dementia have lower DHEA concentrations than those with DS (controlling for age) but without dementia.
唐氏综合征（DS）患者发生早发性痴呆的风险较高。最近的研究表明，脱氢表雄酮（DHEA）浓度随年龄的降低与普通人群的痴呆之间存在关联。本研究调查了 DHEA 血清水平与年龄以及 DS 成人痴呆风险之间的关系。测定了 67 名 DS 成人和 65 名年龄匹配的对照者的 DHEA 血浆浓度。使用 CAMDEX 知情者访谈评估 DS 患者是否存在痴呆。DS 患者的 DHEA 血浆浓度随年龄的增长而降低，对照组也是如此。年龄在两组中均显著预测 DHEA 水平（DS 组 B = -0.06，t = -4.536，P < 0.001；对照组 B = -0.04，t = -2.928，P < 0.005）。对照组的平均 ± SD DHEA 水平为 3.47 ± 1.41 μmol/l，DS 组参与者为 2.79 ± 1.24 μmol/l。差异具有统计学意义（t = -2.981，P < 0.01）。在 DS 人群中，协方差分析显示 DHEA 浓度与痴呆之间存在显著关系（F(1,65) = 4.348，P < 0.05）。我们发现，DS 患者和对照组的 DHEA 水平随年龄增长显著下降，与年龄匹配的对照组相比，在所有研究年龄的 DS 患者中均较低。与无痴呆的 DS 患者（控制年龄）相比，有痴呆证据的 DS 患者的 DHEA 浓度较低。
