1Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Neurodegenerative Disease and Aging Research, Institute of Neuroscience, College of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361102, China
2School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361102, China
3Degenerative Disease Research Program, Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, La Jolla, California 92037, USA

Abstract 

The degeneration of cholinergic neurons and cholinergic hypofunction are pathologies associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChRs) mediate acetylcholine-induced neurotransmission and five mAChR subtypes (M1-M5) have been identified. Among them, M1 mAChR is widely expressed in the central nervous system and has been implicated in many physiological and pathological brain functions. In addition, M1 mAChR is postulated to be an important therapeutic target for AD and several other neurodegenerative diseases. In this article, we review recent progress in understanding the functional involvement of M1 mAChR in AD pathology and in developing M1 mAChR agonists for AD treatment.

Keywords

agonist; Alzheimer’s disease; amyloid; cholinergic hypofunction; M1 muscarinic acetylcholine

[SpringerLink]