Risk factors for Alzheimer's disease during aging. Impacts of glucose/energy metabolism.

The majority of Alzheimer patients is of late onset and with unknown etiology. However, several risk factors have been discussed among which age is a most important one with respect to sporadic Alzheimer type dementia (SDAT). Age includes changes in brain glucose/energy metabolism, in both insulin and acetylcholine signal transduction and in membrane function to name the functionally most important ones. Variations in these parameters can form the basis for ongoing changes in terms of the principle of self-organized critically inducing catastrophic i.e. disease processes. Subsequent abnormalities at the cellular and molecular levels may develop including the formation of both amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles.