By Todd Taylor
It has long been known that the brain’s ability to metabolize a simple form of sugar called glucose gradually decreases as we age, and there is increasing evidence that this is more pronounced in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease.
Now, a new University of Florida study of postmortem human brains suggests that slower glucose and glycogen metabolism in the brain actually contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s, rather than just being a secondary effect of the disease.
“Sugar metabolism in the brain seems to be not just a bystander but something that actually drives Alzheimer’s pathology,” said Stefan Prokop, M.D., who conducted the research at the UF Neuromedicine Human Brain and Tissue Bank he directs.
Published today in Cell Reports Medicine, the findings bolster evidence for preventive factors such as physical exercise and modulating carbohydrate consumption, as these and other factors influence the amount of glucose stored in cells, including brain cells.
“We know that lifestyle factors such as exercise and diet have an influence and are protective against Alzheimer’s,” Prokop said, “and this could be a link that explains why.”