KCC2 in Alzheimer ' s Disease

The challenge with most identified mechanisms of disease is that they are not close enough to root causes to be highly influential on the progression of the condition. Particularly in the case of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, the condition is very complex, and there is much to be discovered about how dysfunction progresses. That doesn't mean that any given aspect of that progression will prove to be useful enough to make the jump from improvements shown in animal models to a basis for therapy in humans. There are many discoveries in the history of Alzheimer's research that have appeared to be as interesting as the work noted here. Studies have shown that even before Alzheimer's symptoms appear, brain activity is disrupted in people who go on to develop the disease. There is neuronal hyperactivity and signal disorganization in the brain. The main inhibitor of neuronal signals in the human brain is the neurotransmitter GABA. It works in close collaboration with a cotransporter, KCC2. This is an ion pump, located in the cell membrane, which circulates chloride and potassium ions between the inside and outside of neurons. "A loss of KCC2 in the cell membrane can lead to neuronal hyperactivity. One study has already shown that KCC2 levels were reduced in the brains of deceased Alzheimer's patients. This gave us the idea of examining the role of KCC2 in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease." Scientists used mice expressing a manifestation...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs