Department of Human Genetics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Trends Neurosci. 2018 Apr;41(4):211-223. doi: 10.1016/j.tins.2018.01.010. Epub 2018 Feb 20.
It has been known for decades that degeneration of the locus coeruleus (LC), the major noradrenergic nucleus in the brain, occurs in both Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD), but it was given scant attention. It is now recognized that hyperphosphorylated tau in the LC is the first detectable AD-like neuropathology in the human brain, α-synuclein inclusions in the LC represent an early step in PD, and experimental LC lesions exacerbate neuropathology and cognitive/behavioral deficits in animal models. The purpose of this review is to consider the causes and consequences of LC pathology, dysfunction, and degeneration, as well as their implications for early detection and treatment.
几十年来，人们已经知道大脑中主要的去甲肾上腺素能核——蓝斑（LC）的退化，既发生在阿尔茨海默病（AD）中，也发生在帕金森病（PD）中，但这一现象一直没有得到足够的重视。现在人们已经认识到，LC 中过度磷酸化的 tau 是大脑中最早可检测到的类似 AD 的神经病理学表现，LC 中的α-突触核蛋白代表 PD 的早期步骤，而 LC 的实验性损伤会加剧动物模型中的神经病理学和认知/行为缺陷。本综述的目的是考虑 LC 病理、功能障碍和退化的原因和后果，以及它们对早期发现和治疗的意义。
