Basics of Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia

Abstract

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is a disorder that causes degeneration of the cells in the brain and it is the main cause of dementia, which is characterized by a decline Independence in an individual’s daily activities. AD is considered a multifactorial disease. Two main hypotheses have been proposed as the cause of AD. The cholinergic hypothesis and the amyloid hypothesis. In addition, several risk factors have been implicated in this disease, including aging, genetic factors, head trauma, vascular disease, infections, and environmental factors. Currently, there are only two classes of drugs approved for the treatment of AD, including cholinesterase enzyme inhibitors and N-Methyl-D-Aspartic Acid (NMDA) antagonists, which are not associated with AD symptoms or disease. Prevent. Today, research is focused on understanding the pathology of AD by targeting multiple mechanisms such as alteration of AD course. This review describes the drugs currently available and future theories for the development of new treatments for AD, including Disease-Modifying Therapies (DMTs), chaperones, and natural products.