 Can further research on the use of Lithium in Alzheimer’s patients prove to be beneficial in the prevention and/or improvement in the life of Alzheimer’s patients |
Abstract
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a slow and
progressive disease that affects the brain’s cognitive abilities while bipolar
is a manic depressive disorder that causes mood swings from depression to high
energy and activity levels. Neuritic
plaques and neurofibrillary tangles that are evidenced in the brain tissue of
patients with Alzheimer’s have been proven to be directly linked to the
diagnosis of the disease. Lithium, a
drug that has been used to treat bipolar patients for more than 50 years,
inhibits glycogen synthase kincase-3, an enzyme which plays a key role in the
production of these neuritic plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. At this time there is no cure for Alzheimer’s
nor a proven treatment for the disease, however science is getting close. It is estimated that the growth of the
disease continues to steadily climb. For
this reason there is a need to investigate further the possibilities of the use
of lithium or a derivative thereof in the treatment of AD.
Lithium Benefits and Alzheimer’s To Be or Not to Be
Lithium
carbonate has been a long time successful treatment for those suffering from
bipolar disorder. Recent studies,
however, have been conducted in the research of the possible use of lithium in
Alzheimer’s patients however more in depth studies are necessary in order to
conclude whether small regular doses of lithium or lithium orotate can either
aid in the prevention and/or slow the effects of Alzheimer’s disease in
patients. Although the cause for the
disease is not fully understood, there are numerous possibilities for the onset
of Alzheimer’s ranging from depression, bipolar, low testosterone, hormone
levels, genetics, lifestyle and environmental factors. This paper will focus upon the need for
further research and possible introduction of the use of lithium and/or lithium
orotate in the treatment of Alzheimer’s patients.
Brief
History and Description of Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s effects cognitive behavior, memory loss, problem solving
and reasoning skills stemming from brain cell malfunction and damage. Dementia that is brought on by Alzheimer’s
disease is progressive and debilitating.
Although it is believed that the disease has probably been in existence
since the onset of mankind, it wasn’t until the early 1900s when the
distinction of the disease referred to as dementia or salinity was discovered
and termed by Dr. Alois Alzheimer and his colleague, Emil Kraeplin. During an autopsy on a patient’s brain, Dr.
Alzheimer detected neuritic plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain
tissue. (Cutler & Sramek, 1996) (p.iii) This finding solidified that there was a
significant difference between the effects of normal memory lapses due to aging
and/or salinity and that of the effects of Alzheimer’s disease. It also brought forth that the disease can
only be definitely diagnosed upon the death of the patient and the results of
an autopsy of the brain tissue.
Brain
Function in Alzheimer’s
According to Neal R.
Cutler and John J. Sramek, there are various criteria in the diagnosing of the
disease; they state the following that “a certain number of neuritic plaques
(the type of plaque most commonly seen in Alzheimer’s disease) correlated with
age and also figures in the presence or absence of Alzheimer’s disease symptoms
in life where possible.” (Cutler & Sramek, 1996) (p. 12) The
suspected pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) involves several phases in
the brain. Neurofibrillary tangles occur
within the neuron and contain the protein tau which aids in signaling
pathways. In an Alzheimer’s patient the
tau protein is abnormal which in turn causes degradation to the cell. The
derivative from this accumulation of nitric oxide synthase (NOS2) can be toxic
to neurons hence cell death. (Yoram Vodovotz, 1996)
Neuritic plaques also
hold a significant key to the mystery of brain atrophy in Alzheimer’s
patients. Affected neurons in patients
with AD accumulate an amyloid protein or amyloid beta which out puts nitric
oxide synthase (NOS2). The formation of
neuritic plaques appear which are intercellular and accumulate between the
neurons, this interference in the pathway is a probable cause to the faulty
processing between the neurotransmitters and receptors. (Yoram Vodovotz, 1996) There is a significant linkage to NOS2 and
that of the pathogenesis in AD.
Lithium
and Its Effect on the Brain
Lithium is a natural mineral that has been in use for more than fifty
years for the treatment of patients suffering from bipolar depression. Lithium is expelled through the kidneys and
the use of it in bipolar patients must be monitored as there is a risk where it
can build up in the system. Lithium
carbonate has been used to treat bipolar patients and Lithium orotate has been
safely used to treat patients of alcoholism.
(Sartori, 1986) Lithium has also
been found to inhibit glycogen synthase kinase-3 which is a key factor in the
production of neuritic plaques and neurofibrillary tangles which are prevalent
in Alzheimer’s disease. (Nunes, 2007)
According to
a recent study notated in The Lancet “Chronic use of lithium has been shown to
increase neurogenesis in adult rodent brains, and studies by Eriksson and
colleagues have shown that neurogenesis occurs in adult human brains. Taken
together, the increases in human grey matter, the increases in human-brain
N-acetyl-aspartate concentrations, the increases in bcl-2 levels, the clear
evidence for neurotrophic/neuroprotective effects, and the increased
neurogenesis in rodent studies suggest that some of the long-term benefits of
lithium may be mediated by neurotrophic effects.” (Moore, 2000) These findings highlight that there is the
possibility that lithium could aid in brain cell generation. Further effects of
lithium noted in a recent article from
the Salk Institute for Biological Studies it was stated that “The stem
cell-derived neurons were three to four times more electrically active than
control cells and tended to burn themselves out,” said John Kelsoe, Jr.,
professor of psychiatry at UC San Diego School of Medicine and a co-author of
the study. “This was reversed by treatment with lithium, but only in cells that
came from patients who had responded to lithium,” (Salk News Release, 2015) proving that lithium
was attributed to new cell growth in the gray matter of the brain.
Conclusion
Alzheimer’s has been a growing worldwide concern and the numbers of
those who have it and are projected to become one of its victims, is
consistently on the rise. (2015 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures, 2015) It is a debilitating cognitive disease that
not only affects the patient but the family, caregivers and elevates the rising
medical costs it takes to care for the patient.
Proven effectiveness has been shown with the use of lithium in bipolar
patients’ brain activity and its success in managing the disorder. Positive results have been ascertained from
the benefits of the use of lithium in Alzheimer’s patients previously diagnosed
with bipolar. Nitric oxide, neuritic
plaques and neurofibrillary tangles play significant roles in the pathological
diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease and lithium plays a part in controlling the
production of these key factors. Lithium
is not a synthetic drug it is natural chemical element, one to be investigated
further for the possible benefit in either the prevention or stabilization of
Alzheimer’s disease. With more research
studies and testing could significantly move the research to further findings
for a cure for AD.
Works Cited
2015 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures. (2015). Retrieved October 31, 2015, from Alzheimer's
Association: http://www.alz.org/facts/
Cutler, N. R., & Sramek, J. J. (1996). Understanding
Alzheimer's Disease. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi.
Moore, G. J. (2000). Lithium-induced increase in human
brain grey matter. The Lancet, 356(9237), 1241-1242.
Nunes, P. V. (2007, March). Lithium and risk for
Alzheimer's disease in elderly patients with bipolar disorder. The British
Journal of Psychiatry, 190(4), 359-360.
Salk News Release. (2015, October 28). Retrieved November 1, 2015, from Salk Institute for
Biological Studies:
http://www.salk.edu/news/pressrelease_details.php?press_id=2126
Sartori, H. (1986, March-April). Lithium orotate ni
the treatment of alscoholism and related conditions. Alcohol an
International Biomedical Journal, 3(2), 97-100.
Yoram Vodovotz, M. S.-W. (1996, October). Iducible
nitric oxide synthase in tangle-bearing neurons of patiens with alzheimer's
disease. The Journal of Experiemental Medicine, 184(4), 1425-1433.
