Distribution of tryptase-containing mast cells and metal-lothionein reactive astrocytes in human brains with amyloid deposits

• Published in: Inflammation research 2007-04, Vol.56, p.S17-S18
• Main Authors: Maslinska, D, Laure-Kamionowska, M, Maslinski, K T, Gujski, M, Maslinski, S
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1023-3830; 1420-908X
• DOI: 10.1007/s00011-006-0508-8

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurode-generative disorder of the elderly, causing severe and permanent impairment of multiple cognitive faculties. The two most striking pathological features of AD are extracellular deposits of beta-amyloid plaques in the cerebral cortex and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles of hyperphosphorylated tau proteins. A variety of different mechanisms has been suggested to contribute to neuronal death in AD, including genetic and environmental factors. Increasing data support the hypothesis that inflammation is involved in the pathogenesis of the disease. Mast-cell tryptase is a protease with proinflammatory activity and an important indicator of mast cell activation and degranulation. Metallothionein (MT) has several putative roles in metal detoxification, in scavenging free radicals, and in acute phase responses. Therefore, we have studied the distribution of these two proteins in the brains of individuals with AD and in brains of patients who died within a few minutes after cardiac arrest.