Doherty G H
School of Biology, University of Street Andrews, Bute Building, West burn Lane, St Andrews, Fife KY16 9TS, UK.
Curr Gerontol Geriatr Res. 2011;2011:708154. doi: 10.1155/2011/708154. Epub 2011 Oct 16.
Obesity and ageing are both characteristics of the human population that are on the increase across the globe. It has long been established that ageing is the major risk factor for neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, and it is becoming increasingly evident that obesity is another such factor. Leptin resistance or insensitivity has been uncovered as a cause of obesity, and in addition the leptin signalling system is less potent in the elderly. Taken together, these findings reveal that this molecule may be a link between neurodegeneration and obesity or ageing. It is now known that leptin has beneficial effects on both the survival and neurophysiology of the neurons that are lost in Alzheimer's disease suggesting that it may be an important research target in the quest for strategies to prevent, halt, or cure this condition.
肥胖和老龄化都是全球范围内不断增加的人类群体特征。长期以来，人们已经确定老龄化是神经退行性疾病（如阿尔茨海默病）的主要风险因素，而且越来越明显的是，肥胖也是另一个这样的因素。瘦素抵抗或不敏感已被发现是肥胖的一个原因，此外，瘦素信号系统在老年人中效力较低。综合来看，这些发现表明该分子可能是神经退行性变与肥胖或老龄化之间的一个联系。现在已知瘦素对阿尔茨海默病中丢失的神经元的存活和神经生理学都有有益作用，这表明它可能是寻求预防、阻止或治愈这种疾病策略的重要研究靶点。
