| ▲ A study found that intermittent hypoxic conditions caused by OSA can influence the development of Alzheimer’s disease. (Photo = DB) |
[메디컬투데이=최재백 기자] Intermittent hypoxic conditions due to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have been shown to play a role in the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
Findings from a study that intermittent hypoxic conditions caused by OSA can influence the onset of Alzheimer’s disease have been published in the journal Nature.
The research team used a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease to study the effects of OSA on the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease.
The research team found that OSA exacerbated cognitive decline in mice with Alzheimer’s disease. They explained that OSA affects blood oxygen levels, such that intermittent hypoxic conditions lead to changes in the pathology characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease, and that these changes can be prevented by restoring blood oxygen levels during sleep.
According to the study, mice with Alzheimer’s disease and OSA had greater accumulation of beta-amyloid in the brain and greater loss of cholinergic neurons (cBF) in the basal forebrain than control mice.
The researchers explained that the cBF is a neuron that plays a role in regulating cognitive processes such as spatial perception and associative learning, and is the first nerve cell to degenerate when suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.
They wanted to study the effect of OSA-induced hypoxia on cBF degeneration and beta-amyloid accumulation. They studied the effects of sleep deprivation in mice with Alzheimer’s disease but no OSA and found that the mice had reduced working memory but not cBF counts, and that inflammation and beta-amyloid levels were similar to of normal mice in the control group.
They then noted that the number of cBF neurons remained similar even when sleeping mice were exposed to a hypoxic environment for 8 hours per day for 4 weeks, and evaluated that chronic hypoxia and sleep deprivation did not induce Alzheimer’s disease.
Next, the research team paid attention to the effect of intermittent hypoxia, not chronic axemia, on the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease.
When mice with Alzheimer’s disease and OSA were exposed to a high-oxygen environment during 4 weeks of 12-hour sleep, the mice increased the number of cBF neurons and decreased beta-amyloid levels and inflammation.
Regarding the research findings, the research team explained that the intermittent hypoxic conditions due to breathing disorders during sleep promote the death of brain cells necessary for concentration and executive functions, and accelerate inflammation and the formation of the brain. amyloid plaque, leading to the loss of memory cells.
They concluded that OSA may be a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease even in the absence of complications.
Furthermore, experts predict that the treatment of OSA may have an impact on the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
They refer to the discovery of target molecular markers to prevent the onset of OSA in patients at high risk of Alzheimer’s disease who cannot tolerate positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy and it has been analyzed that further research is needed in this regard .
Additionally, experts say getting regular sleep apnea screenings at home as part of an assessment of healthy brain aging can significantly reduce the incidence of dementia.
They said future research should evaluate which patient groups are most vulnerable to the adverse effects of sleep apnea and when treatment for sleep apnea is most effective at preserving brain health and preventing cognitive decline.
Medical Today reporter Jaebaek Choi ([email protected])
[저작권자ⓒ 메디컬투데이. 무단전재-재배포 금지]
