Iron, neuroinflammation, and Alzheimer's disease

Issue title: Dedicated to Prof. Marino Nicolini

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Ong, Wei-Yi^{a; *} | Farooqui, Akhlaq A.^b

Affiliations: [a] Department of Anatomy, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119260 | [b] Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, USA

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author: Dr. Wei-Yi Ong, Department of Anatomy, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119260. Tel.: +65 68743662; Fax: +65 67787643; E-mail: antongwy@nus.edu.sg.

Abstract: The present article reviews the roles and interactions of iron and neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease. It highlights the importance of neuroinflammatory changes in the glial scar after neuronal injury, in promoting iron accumulation, and iron-dependent oxidative damage. Elevation of iron in Alzheimer's disease not only affects amyloid precursor protein processing and mitochondrial function but also induces the aggregation of Aβ peptide and abnormalities in signal transduction processes associated with oxidative damage. Collective evidence suggests that although alterations in iron homeostasis may not be the primary triggering event that starts the pathological cascade of Alzheimer's disease, it is an important factor involved in neuroinflammation and progression of this disease.

DOI: 10.3233/JAD-2005-8211

Journal: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 183-200, 2005