Authors: Audrey G. Stephenson, Vincent S. Gallicchio.
Alzheimer’s Disease is a condition caused by neural plaques and tangles that affects the lives of millions of people worldwide. The average life expectancy after the initial dementia diagnosis in the United States of America is about 3-4 years. Currently, there is no complete cure for the disorder. However, recent research has been investigating the therapeutic effects of both stem cells and lithium. Stem cells are cells that have the capability to differentiate into other cells when necessary to assist in damage repair. As neurons die off in Alzheimer’s patients, certain types of stem cells have been shown by several studies to be effective in increasing the proliferation of neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes. Furthermore, stem cell proliferation associated with their transplantation into the brains of rodent models has been studied, and the results demonstrated that rodents had an increased level of cognitive and motor functioning. Lithium has been more recently studied in combination with MSC transplantation therapy and provided promising results, in that it was able to increase neuronal proliferation and differentiation. Alone, lithium is the most potent inhibitor of the GSK-3β pathway that, when hyperactive, leads to the development of Alzheimer’s Disease. This finding has given way to studies that have been able to show that lithium can decrease the plaques and tangles, stemming from Tau hyperphosphorylation, that characterize AD.
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