Scientists from the University of Washington were able to understand why women are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.
The study was published in Brain magazine. According to scientists, this is partly due to age: women are more likely to outlive men, and the interval is solid – five to six years.
If we consider that it is old age that is the main cause of dementia, then everything is logical. However, there are other factors as well.
For example, using studies on mice, scientists have found that Alzheimer’s disease is affected by the release of the hormone cortisol, which is associated with an increase in the amount of beta-amyloid in the brain in female rodents. They are deposited between neurons in the form of amyloid plaques, exerting a toxic effect. This process leads to dementia.
In male mice, no such effect on the brain was observed. Therefore, reducing stress levels for women will be more beneficial than for men.
Further experiments clearly showed that the difference comes down to the cellular pathway of responding to stress within the brain. The neurons of female mice produce the stress hormone, triggering a set of events that increase beta-amyloid levels in the brain, while male mice lack the ability to do the same. “Gazeta.ru” .
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