Literature review of Alzheimer’s disease aetiology

By, Assoc. Prof. Hafez AL-MOMANI

Abstract

Introduction: The most prevalent neurodegenerative illness and kind of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease (AD). It shows up as a reduction in short-term memory and cognitive function that affects day-to-day functioning. The majority of Alzheimer’s cases are idiopathic, but a tiny percentage of hereditary instances provide gene identification, which when combined with neuropathology provides crucial hints regarding the broader causes. The development and course of the illness are influenced by metabolic and environmental risk factors, such as vascular impairment and inflammation. We still don’t fully grasp how neuronal shrinkage and synaptic loss occur across the cerebral cortex. The aim of this review paper is to give a concise overview of AD and its pathogenesis. Methods: Relevant terms were applied to several databases (including CENTRAL; CINAHL; EMBASE; Medline Ovid; and PubMed NCBI) to search for studies exploring aetiology of AD. Result and discussion: Eight etiological theories have been identified based our database search. These include: 1) The aging process; 2) The deterioration of cholinergic and cortical anatomic channels; 3) Environmental factors; 4) Genetic causes; 5) Metabolic malfunction resulting from defects in the mitochondria; 6) Blood/brain barrier impairments; 7) Immune and viral aetiology.
Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease, aetiology, Theory of Aging, Cholinergic hypothesis

https://doi.org/10.58944/jsur6977