1Department of Pharmacology, 2Institute of Brain Sciences, School of Medicine, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
3The Joint Laboratory of Brain Function and Health, Jinan University and The University of Hong Kong, Jinan University,Guangzhou 510632, China
4Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical College of Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410013, China
5Ganzhou People’s Hospital, Ganzhou 341000, China

Abstract 

There is no effective drug to treat Alzheimer’s disease (AD), a neurodegenerative disease affecting an estimated 30 million people around the world. Strongly supported by preclinical and clinical studies, amyloid-beta (Aβ) may be a target for developing drugs against AD. Meanwhile, the fact that localized neuronal death/loss and synaptic impairment occur in AD should also be considered. Neuronal regeneration, which does not occur normally in the mammalian central nervous system, can be promoted by neurotrophic factors (NTFs). Evidence from clinical trials has shown that both Aβ clearance and NTFs are potentially effective in treating AD, thus a new approach combining Aβ clearance and administration of NTFs may be an effective therapeutic strategy.

Keywords

Alzheimer’s disease; amyloid-beta; neurotrophic factors; treatment

[SpringerLink]