ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE: A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a disorder that causes degeneration of brain cells and is the main cause of dementia, which is characterized by a decline in thinking and independence in daily personal activities. AD is a neurodegenerative disease and its pathogenesis has been attributed to extracellular aggregates of amyloid β (Aβ) plaques and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles made of hyperphosphorylated τ protein in cortical and limbic areas of the human brain. AD is considered a multifactorial disease and has several risk factors such as increasing age, genetic factors, head injuries, vascular diseases, infections and environmental factors play a role in the disease. Currently, there are only two classes of medications approved to treat AD, cholinesterase enzyme inhibitors and N -methyl d -aspartate (NMDA) antagonists, which are only effective in treating the symptoms of AD but do not cure or prevent the disease.