April 27, 2024

Small HDL “Good Cholesterol” Particles May Help Protect Against Alzheimer’s Disease

Utilizing a delicate strategy understood as ion mobility, initially developed by research study co-author Ronald Krauss, M.D., at the University of California, San Francisco, the detectives were able to identify, count and measure the size of individual HDL particles. Of the individuals who took the cognitive tests, the ones with higher levels of small HDL particles in their cerebrospinal fluid performed much better, independent of their age, sex, education or whether or not they brought the APOE4 gene, which puts them at greater risk for Alzheimers illness. The evidence recommends that these HDL particles might be key to discovering treatments that would work early in the disease process, long before cognitive decrease occurs.
We still need to understand the systems that promote the production of these particles, in order to make drugs that increase little HDL in the brain.”
Yassine and his team were led to study HDL particles in the brain because of the many methods they keep the brain healthy.

Researchers from USCs Keck School of Medicine discovered that a higher number of tiny HDL particles in spinal fluid samples was connected to two critical markers that the particles may safeguard against Alzheimers illness.
First-ever research study to determine high-density lipoprotein particle numbers in spinal fluid led by Keck School of Medicine of USC.
Keck School of Medicine of USC researchers found that a higher number of small HDL particles in spine fluid samples was associated with two crucial signs that the particles might have a protective effect versus Alzheimers disease.
Low-density lipoproteins (LDL), often understood as “bad cholesterol,” and high-density lipoproteins (HDL), in some cases referred to as “good cholesterol,” are the subject of medical standards focused on lowering the danger of heart illness. Now, a recent research study reveals that beneficial cholesterol particles in cerebrospinal fluid are connected to brain health.

Apolipoprotein E (APOE) is a protein that contributes in fat metabolic process in mammals. The APOE4 subtype has been linked to Alzheimers illness and cardiovascular illness.

Scientists from the University of Southern Californias Keck School of Medicine acquired samples of cerebrospinal fluid samples from people aged 60 and older and counted the variety of small HDL particles in each sample. The researchers found that having more of these particles in the fluid is related to 2 crucial indicators that the particles may have a protective effect versus Alzheimers disease.
Low-density lipoprotein, or LDL, is typically referred to as “bad cholesterol.” High-density lipoprotein, or HDL, is typically described as “good cholesterol.” While they are frequently kept track of for concerns over plaque forming on capillary linings and causing cardiovascular disease, brand-new research indicates that they are likewise pertinent to brain health.
One indicator is much better efficiency on cognitive tests. The other indicator is greater circulating levels in the cerebrospinal fluid of a particular peptide– like a protein, however smaller– called amyloid beta 42. That peptide contributes to Alzheimers illness when it misfolds and clumps onto neurons, an increased concentration distributing around the brain and spine is actually linked to lower risk for the illness.
” This research study represents the very first time that small HDL particles in the brain have actually been counted,” stated Hussein Yassine, M.D., an associate professor of medication and neurology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. “They might be involved with the clearance and excretion of the peptides that form the amyloid plaques we see in Alzheimers disease, so we speculate that there might be a role for these little HDL particles in prevention.”
Links between HDL and brain health
The scientists recruited 180 healthy participants with an average age of nearly 77 and analyzed samples of their blood plasma and cerebrospinal fluid. Utilizing a delicate strategy understood as ion mobility, initially developed by study co-author Ronald Krauss, M.D., at the University of California, San Francisco, the investigators were able to determine, count and measure the size of private HDL particles.

Of the individuals who took the cognitive tests, the ones with greater levels of small HDL particles in their cerebrospinal fluid carried out much better, independent of their age, sex, education or whether or not they carried the APOE4 gene, which puts them at greater risk for Alzheimers illness. The connection was even stronger amongst those who had no cognitive problems. The evidence suggests that these HDL particles may be essential to finding treatments that would work early in the illness process, long prior to cognitive decrease occurs.
” What were discovering here is that before the start of cognitive impairment, these oils– these little HDL particles– are lubing the system and keeping it healthy,” he stated. “Youve got a time to step in with exercise, drugs or whatever else to keep brain cells healthy. We still need to comprehend the mechanisms that promote the production of these particles, in order to make drugs that increase little HDL in the brain.”
A fresh Alzheimers research instructions and the capacity for avoidance
Yassine and his team were caused study HDL particles in the brain since of the lots of methods they keep the brain healthy. They help form the sheaths that insulate the brain and afferent neuron so they can quickly communicate among themselves, and they play a role in the growth and repair work of nerve cells. They also appear to assist prevent swelling of the barrier in between the brain and blood system, which can lead to cognitive decrease.
Unlike the majority of HDL in the blood, HDL particles in the brain are smaller and need a protein called apolipoprotein E, or ApoE, to do all that work. The strongest threat element for Alzheimers illness, the APOE4 gene, is an anomaly or version of the APOE gene that encodes that extremely exact same protein.
Yassine and his colleagues currently have research studies underway utilizing electron microscopy– which can record images down to the molecular level– in order to better comprehend the structure and function of ApoE HDL. They also intend to study ApoE HDL and Alzheimers danger in time in larger groups of participants, with an eye toward elucidating elements such as the results of medications and of illness consisting of diabetes.
” People are understanding that there is more to late-onset Alzheimers illness,” Yassine said. “Perhaps its similarly intriguing to see how lipids are engaging with amyloid or how newer treatments can be focused not simply on amyloid or tau, however likewise on fats and ApoE.”
Recommendation: “The small HDL particle hypothesis of Alzheimers illness” by Ashley E. Martinez, Gali Weissberger, Zsuzsanna Kuklenyik, Xulei He, Cristiana Meuret, Trusha Parekh, Jon C. Rees, Bryan A. Parks, Michael S. Gardner, Sarah M. King, Timothy S. Collier, Michael G. Harrington, Melanie D. Sweeney, Xinhui Wang, Berislav V. Zlokovic, Elizabeth Joe, Daniel A. Nation, Lon S. Schneider, Helena C. Chui, John R. Barr, S. Duke Han, Ronald M. Krauss and Hussein N. Yassine, 13 April 2022, Alzheimers & & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimers Association.DOI: 10.1002/ alz.12649.
About this research study.
Co-first authors of the research study are Ashley Martinez of the Keck School of Medicine of USC, Gali Weissberger of Bar Ilan University, and Zsuzsanna Kuklenyik of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Other authors are Xulei He, Cristiana Meuret, Trusha Parekh, Jon Rees, Bryan Parks, Michael Gardner, Melanie Sweeney, Michael Harrington, Xinhui Wang, Berislav Zlokovic, Elizabeth Joe, Lon Schneider, Helena Chui, John Barr and Duke Han, all of USC; Sarah King of UCSF; Timothy Collier of Quest Diagnostics in Cleveland; and Daniel Nation of the University of California, Irvine.
The research study was supported by the National Institute on Aging (R21AG056518, R01AG055770, R01AG054434, R01AG067063, R01AG055430, RF1AG068166, R01AG033078, RF1AG054068, P50AG005142, P30AG066530. P01AG052350, T32AG000037, P01AG052350, R01AG039452, R01AG023084, P30AG066530, AG058162, R56AG069130, R01AG072490); the National Institutes of Health (P50GM115318, P01G052350); the National Institute of Environmental Health Science (R01ES025888, ES025888); the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the L.K. Whittier Foundation; the Huntington Medical Research Institutes; the Dairy Research Institute; the Alzheimers Association (strategic 509279 grant); the Cure Alzheimers Fund; the Foundation Leducq Transatlantic Network of Excellence for the Study of Perivascular Spaces in Small Vessel Disease; the Della Martin Foundation; Quest Diagnostics; and Saliogen. The Batey Foundation moneyed instrumentation used for ion movement analysis.
About Keck School of Medicine of USC.
Established in 1885, the Keck School of Medicine of USC is among the nations leading medical institutions, understood for ingenious patient care, scientific discovery, education and neighborhood service. Medical and college students work carefully with world-renowned professors and receive hands-on training in one of the nations most diverse neighborhoods. They take part in advanced research study as they become tomorrows health leaders. The Keck School professors are crucial individuals in training of 1200 resident physicians across 70 specialty and subspecialty programs, thus playing a major role in the education of doctors practicing in Southern California.