Is the blood-brain barrier compromised in vascular cognitive impairment and Alzheimer disease?
One of the pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer disease is the deposition of amyloid plaque in the brain. An abundant source of amyloid beta protein, which is the main constituent of Alzheimer plaques, is the blood. In addition, MR imaging is revealing that microbleeds in the brain is a risk factor for cognitive decline in stroke patients. Furthermore, the accompanying inflammatory response to ischemia would induce opening of the blood-brain barrier. Taken together, these disparate evidences point to the connection between blood-brain barrier disruption and cognitive impairment and that normalization of the blood-brain barrier could be a new therapeutic target.
