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Abstract Details
Is Alzheimer's Disease a Liver Disease of the Brain?
Alzheimers Dis. 2020 Apr 2.doi: 10.3233/JAD-190848. Online ahead of print.
Margaret F Bassendine12, Simon D Taylor-Robinson2, Michael Fertleman23, Michael Khan4, Dermot Neely15
Author information
1Institute of Cellular Medicine, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
2Department of Hepatology & Gastroenterology, Division of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, St Mary's Campus, UK.
3Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, UK.
4University of Warwick & University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, UK.
5Department of Blood Sciences, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, UK.
Abstract
Clinical specialization is not only a force for progress, but it has also led to the fragmentation of medical knowledge. The focus of research in the field of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is neurobiology, while hepatologists focus on liver diseases and lipid specialists on atherosclerosis. This article on AD focuses on the role of the liver and lipid homeostasis in the development of AD. Amyloid-β (Aβ) deposits accumulate as plaques in the brain of an AD patient long before cognitive decline is evident. Aβ generation is a normal physiological process; the steady-state level of Aβ in the brain is determined by balance between Aβ production and its clearance. We present evidence suggesting that the liver is the origin of brain Aβ deposits and that it is involved in peripheral clearance of circulating Aβ in the blood. Hence the liver could be targeted to decrease Aβ production or increase peripheral clearance.