Department of Neurology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
Sci Transl Med. 2011 Apr 6;3(77):77sr1. doi: 10.1126/scitranslmed.3002369.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) was first described a little more than 100 years ago. It is the most common cause of dementia with an estimated prevalence of 30 million people worldwide, a number that is expected to quadruple in 40 years. There currently is no effective treatment that delays the onset or slows the progression of AD. However, major scientific advances in the areas of genetics, biochemistry, cell biology, and neuroscience over the past 25 years have changed the way we think about AD. This review discusses some of the challenges to translating these basic molecular and cellular discoveries into clinical therapies. Current information suggests that if the disease is detected before the onset of overt symptoms, it is possible that treatments based on knowledge of underlying pathogenesis can and will be effective.
阿尔茨海默病(AD)是 100 多年前首次被描述的。它是痴呆症最常见的原因,据估计全球有 3000 万人患有该病,预计在 40 年内这个数字将增加四倍。目前尚无有效的治疗方法可以延缓 AD 的发病或减缓其进展。然而,过去 25 年来,遗传学、生物化学、细胞生物学和神经科学领域的重大科学进展改变了我们对 AD 的看法。这篇综述讨论了将这些基础的分子和细胞发现转化为临床治疗方法所面临的一些挑战。目前的信息表明,如果在明显症状出现之前发现疾病,那么基于潜在发病机制知识的治疗方法可能并且将会是有效的。