アルツハイマー病でも認知機能が保たれる脳の仕組みを解明(Why Some Brains with Alzheimer’s Stay Sharp)

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2026-04-20 カリフォルニア大学サンディエゴ校(UCSD)

米国のカリフォルニア大学サンディエゴ校の研究は、アルツハイマー病の病理を持ちながらも認知機能を保つ人がいる理由を解明した。研究では、脳内にアミロイドβやタウの蓄積があっても、神経回路の結合性や特定の免疫応答が維持されている場合、認知機能の低下が抑えられることが示された。特に、神経ネットワークの柔軟性や炎症制御が「認知的レジリエンス(耐性)」に重要な役割を果たすと考えられる。この知見は、単に病理の除去を目指すのではなく、脳の防御・補償メカニズムを強化する新たな治療戦略の可能性を示している。

アルツハイマー病でも認知機能が保たれる脳の仕組みを解明(Why Some Brains with Alzheimer’s Stay Sharp)
A hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease is the buildup of abnormal proteins in the brain, such as this amyloid plaque. However, not everyone with these changes develops symptoms. UC San Diego researchers are working to understand why.

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AIを活用した無症状アルツハイマー病のマウスモデルの発見 AI guided discovery of a murine model of asymptomatic Alzheimer’s disease

Suborno Jati,Sahar Taheri,Satadeepa Kal,Subhash C. Sinha,Brian P. Head,Sushil K. Mahata & Debashis Sahoo
Acta Neuropathologica Communications  Published:04 April 2026
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1186/s40478-026-02286-y  Unedited version

Abstract

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder defined by extracellular deposition of amyloid-β (Aβ) plaques and intracellular accumulation of hyperphosphorylated Tau in neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs). Notably, approximately 20–30% of older individuals harbor substantial amyloid and Tau pathology yet remain cognitively intact, a clinically silent state referred to as asymptomatic Alzheimer’s disease (AsymAD). The biological basis of this cognitive resilience remains poorly understood, in large part due to the absence of mechanistic frameworks and preclinical models that dissociate neuropathology from cognitive decline. Here, we integrate systems-level Boolean network modeling with in vivo validation to define the transcriptomic logic of AsymAD and establish an experimentally tractable murine model of cognitive resilience. Boolean implication networks trained on large-scale human cortical RNA-sequencing datasets identified a robust, invariant AD gene signature that accurately stratified disease states across multiple independent cohorts. Reverse translation of this signature to transgenic mouse models revealed a striking dissociation between molecular pathology and behavioral outcome in Chromogranin A (CgA)–deficient PS19 mice (CgA-KO/PS19). Male CgA-KO/PS19 mice exhibited AD-like transcriptomic and neuropathological features in the prefrontal cortex while retaining intact learning and memory. Female CgA-KO/PS19 mice demonstrated even greater resilience, characterized by suppression of Tau aggregation and preservation of synaptic ultrastructure. Together, these findings establish a validated murine model of AsymAD and identify CgA as a modifiable molecular node linking neuroendocrine signaling, Tauopathy, and cognitive preservation. This integrative computational–experimental framework provides a scalable and generalizable platform for dissecting sex-specific mechanisms of cognitive resilience, identifying early biomarkers of disease trajectory, and enabling mechanism-guided development of preventive therapeutic strategies for AD.

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