Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2001 Nov-Dec;22(6):837-42.
doi: 10.1016/s0197-4580(01)00276-7.

Inflammatory factors are elevated in brain microvessels in Alzheimer's disease

P Grammas  1 , R Ovase
Affiliations

Inflammatory factors are elevated in brain microvessels in Alzheimer's disease

P Grammas et al. Neurobiol Aging. 2001 Nov-Dec.

Abstract

In Alzheimer's disease (AD) inflammatory processes occur in pathologically vulnerable brain regions. The objective of this study is to compare both the release and the presence of microvessel-associated cytokines in vessels isolated from the brains of AD patients to microvessels from control brains. Microvessels are isolated from the cortices of AD patients and age-matched controls, without evidence of neurodegenerative disease. Inflammatory factors in the media are quantitated by ELISA and microvessel-associated mediators assessed by Western blot. Our results demonstrate that unstimulated AD microvessels release significantly higher levels of interleukin-1beta-(IL-1beta), IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) compared to non-AD microvessels. Levels of microvessel-associated monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP-1) and IL-1beta are high in AD-derived microvessels, but not detectable in non-AD microvessels. These results suggest that the cerebral microcirculation contributes inflammatory mediators to the milieu of the AD brain and may be involved in the pathogenesis of neuronal injury and death in this disorder.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources