Keynotes:
- High levels of autotaxin are found in the brains of obese adults, a study found
- However, large quantities are also present in sufferers of Alzheimer’s disease
- Being overweight is known to make insulin resistant – leading to type 2 diabetes
- It is thought the preventable condition causes the brain to use less blood sugar
- This, in turn, makes neurons less effective in processing information, experts say
It’s a known fact that poor physical health can have an impact on the brain. Now researchers strengthen the link saying it could increase the chances of developing dementia.
Measuring the brain levels of a chemical could predict the occurrence of Alzheimer’s in a person. However, large quantities of the enzyme, which is found in the protective fluid around the organ, also reside in people with memory loss. In people with diabetes, the brain uses less blood sugar- making neurons less effective in processing information.
The Study:
Researchers from Iowa State University analyzed data collected from 287adults who were between the ages of 56 and 89. Participants were asked to complete various tests to measure their cognitive ability, including repeating a list of words over certain time periods. In their findings published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, they say the enzyme can help to determine the amount of energy the brain is using. They found just one point in a difference in levels, from a two to a three, is equal to a five hold increase in the odds of being diagnosed with memory loss.
People with more of the chemical had fewer and smaller brain cells in the frontal and temporal lobes, regions associated with memory and executive function. As a result, they had lower scores for memory and tests related to reasoning and multitasking.
Autotaxin found in CSF, is even a stronger indicator of type 2 diabetes. A single point increase reflects a 300% greater chance of having the disease – or pre-diabetes, the findings published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s disease found.
They found just one point in a difference in levels, from a two to a three, is equal to a five hold increase in the odds of being diagnosed with memory loss. Study author Professor Auriel Willette said: ‘We have been looking for metabolic biomarkers which are closer to the brain. ‘We are also looking for markers that reliably scale up with the disease and have consistently higher levels across the Alzheimer’s spectrum.
Theory:
‘Autotaxin is related to a less real estate in the brain, and smaller brain regions in Alzheimer’s disease mean they are less able to carry out their functions. The same holds true in case of diabetes where neurons use less blood sugar, process information slowly and make mistakes.
Application in the future: Medications used to treat diabetes could also be used in future to halt the onset of cognitive decline, quoted the Professor.
This comes after a study earlier this year found patients with type 2 diabetes are 60 percent more likely to develop dementia.
Australian researchers found women with diabetes were more likely to get vascular dementia – caused by a reduced blood supply to the brain.
They believed their findings to be down to how sugar in the blood interacts with blood vessels.
FLICKERING LIGHTS FOR ALZHEIMER’S?
Flashing lights in the eyes of Alzheimer’s sufferers could be a new treatment for the disease, a study earlier this month suggested.
In what was described as a promising new avenue for research, flickering lights were found to drastically reduce levels of plaques in the brain in mice with Alzheimer’s symptoms.
In Alzheimer’s disease, brain waves are disrupted, but the light treatment was found to encourage the brain cells to begin firing normally again.
As the normal pattern was resumed, this boosted the natural immune response of the brain, US researchers found.