Showing posts with label Alzheimer's disease and cystatin C. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Alzheimer's disease and cystatin C. Show all posts

Sunday, October 19, 2008

Blood protein tied to Alzheimer's disease and other dementia, risk

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Low levels of cystatin C -- a blood protein commonly used as a measure of kidney function -- may be a risk factor for the development of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias in elderly men, researchers report.

Cystatin C is produced by nearly all human cells and available in all body fluids. During the past decade, studies have suggested that cystatin C activity in the brain may protect against the development of Alzheimer's disease by inhibiting amyloid-beta -- a protein in the body that forms amyloid plaques in the brain, a key feature of Alzheimer's disease.

To further explore this idea, Dr. Johan Sundelof, of Uppsala University, Sweden, and colleagues examined the association between blood levels of cystatin C and the development....read the whole article