ABSTRACT
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is dementia without a known cause such as stroke, alcoholism or brain trauma. At the age of 65, AD affects 5% of people, at age 95, 90%. About two-thirds of dementia will prove to be AD. There are three major neuro-chemical malfunctions in AD, each of them contributing to accelerated nerve cell death: excessive neuronal stimulation by the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate, deficit of the protective neuronal growth factors and loss of biochemical defence against attack by reactive oxygen species. No drugs are yet available to counter the progression of any of these, though epidemiological studies have associated simple nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen with reduced risk of AD. Research has also shown that AD sufferers have a loss of cholin-ergic neuronal function due to reduced ability both to synthesise acetyl choline and to recycle it for reuse.
