Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is an incurable neurodegenerative disease. It is the most common form of dementia among the elderly population. So far, no effective methods of its treatment have been found. Research to better understand the mechanism of pathology may provide new methods for early diagnosis. This, in turn, could enable early intervention that could slow or halt disease progression and improve patients’ quality of life. Therefore, minimally invasive markers, including serum-based markers, are being sought to improve the diagnosis of AD. One of the important markers may be the concentration of UCHL1 and the proteasome in the blood serum. Their concentration can be affected by many factors, including eating habits. This study was conducted in 110 patients with early or moderate AD, with a mean age of 78.0 ± 8.1 years. The patients were under the care of the Podlasie Center of Psychogeriatrics and the Department of Neurology (Medical University of Białystok, Poland). The control group consisted of 60 healthy volunteers, matched for gender and age. The concentration of UCHL1 and the 20S proteasome subunit were measured by surface plasmon resonance imaging (SPRI). In addition, a nutritional interview was conducted with patients with AD, which assessed the frequency of consumption of 36 groups of products. In the group of patients with AD, compared to the control group, we showed a significantly higher concentration of UCHL1 (56.05 vs. 7.98 ng/mL) and the proteasome (13.02 vs. 5.72 µg/mL). Moreover, we found a low negative correlation between UCHL1 and the proteasome in the control group, and positive in the AD group. The analysis of eating habits showed that the consumption of selected groups of products may affect the concentration of the tested components, and therefore may have a protective effect on AD.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the most common form of dementia in the elderly. In recent years, markers of this disease have been researched, with an emphasis on prophylaxis. The aim of this study is to evaluate the concentration of fibronectin and MMP-1 in serums in relation to levels of antioxidant elements, as well as eating habits in the group of patients with AD (n = 110). The control group consisted of 60 healthy people. The conducted studies showed that patients with AD are characterized by a significantly higher median concentration of fibronectin compared to healthy subjects (652.06 vs. 268.31 µg/mL), but a significantly lower median of MMP-1 (4.62 vs. 18.09 ng/mL). Significant inverse correlations between MMP-1 and the concentration of antioxidant elements, as well as positive correlations between MMP-1 vs. Total Antioxidant Status (TAS) and MMSE, were observed. Multiple regressions showed that the concentration of fibronectin can be explained in 28% cases by eating habits, and by MMP-1 in 25%. Nutritional modifications to reduce the consumption of fruit, meat and processed products can be part of AD prevention.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia in older people. Its prevalence is expected to increase, and therefore it poses a serious challenge to the healthcare system. The aim of the study was to assess the concentration of leptin, cystatin C, neuropilin-1 and tau protein, as well as the influence of dietary habits on these parameters, in a group of AD patients (n = 110) compared to 60 healthy people (n = 60). It has been shown that AD patients, compared to healthy people, are characterized by significantly higher median concentrations of leptin (9.97 vs. 3.08), cystatin c (1.53 vs. 0.56) and tau protein (8.46 vs. 4.19), but significantly lower median neuropilin-1 (69.94 vs. 167.28). Multiple regression analyses showed that leptin levels could be explained by dietary habits in 27%, cystatin C in 51%, neuropilin-1 in 41% and tau protein in 25% of cases. Modification of eating habits may contribute to improving the values of the discussed parameters.