Why are statins of interest in Alzheimers disease?
Epidemiological studies have found a link between taking statins to reduce cholesterol levels and a decreased occurrence of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers explored the possibility of such a relationship because several previous studies suggested that people with cardiovascular risk factors have an increased Alzheimer risk. Other studies have shown that in the brain, the cholesterol-carrying protein apolipoprotein E (ApoE) promotes aggregation of the protein fragment beta-amyloid into the amyloid plaques that are a hallmark Alzheimer pathology. Further, individuals who have APOE-e4—one of the three common variations of the gene that codes production of ApoE—have an increased likelihood of developing the common, late-onset form of Alzheimer’s. These lines of evidence suggest that cholesterol levels and differences in the body’s cholesterol-processing pathways may influence Alzheimer risk. A small study involving 44 participants with normal cholesterol levels and a diagnosis of Alzheime
