Neurodegenerative Diseases: Their Onset, Epidemiology, Causes and Treatment

Abstract

Neurodegenerative diseases are a group of diseases with several neuropathological symptoms. Degenerative nerve diseases can be serious or life‐threatening. Because of the rise in the older population in recent years, these age‐dependent diseases are becoming more and more common. The WHO reports that within a few years, neurodegenerative diseases will overtake cancer to become the second leading cause of fatalities with cardiovascular diseases being the first. All neurodegenerative diseases have a common ground in that they are all associated with some sort of gene mutation leading to subsequent protein dysfunction. This review focuses on 6 neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, spinal muscular atrophy, spinocerebellar ataxia, and prions disease. The study aims to provide a basic understanding of the onset, epidemiology, causes, and role of associated proteins of the neurodegenerative diseases and will also go over any treatments which are currently being employed for the specific diseases. This presented data will allow to establish a slight comparison between the mentioned diseases and highlight any similarities and dissimilarities they may possess, thus providing the scientific community with basic knowledge on these diseases to help future research.

Molecular Biomarkers of Neurodegenerative Disorders: A Practical Guide to Their Appropriate Use and Interpretation in Clinical Practice

“…NDs represent a major and increasing global public health concern, accounting for a significant portion of the disease burden worldwide [2]. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that within 15-20 years, NDs will become the second-leading cause of death, after cardiovascular diseases, owing to the constant increase in the elderly population [3]. Indeed, aging is the most important risk factor for NDs.…”

GPR37 Processing and Density in Neurodegeneration: A Potential Marker for Parkinson’s Disease Progression Rate

“…Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) consist of a spectrum of disorders characterised by the dysfunction and ongoing loss of neurons and neuronal networks in the central nervous system (CNS) [49]. Among these, Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are the most common NDDs, each with markedly different clinical manifestations [13,49].…”

“…Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) consist of a spectrum of disorders characterised by the dysfunction and ongoing loss of neurons and neuronal networks in the central nervous system (CNS) [49]. Among these, Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD) are the most common NDDs, each with markedly different clinical manifestations [13,49]. PD shows signi cant clinical overlap with disorders characterised by atypical parkinsonism syndrome (APS), including multiple system atrophy (MSA), corticobasal degeneration (CBD), and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) [9].…”

Quantitative Colorimetric Sensing of Carbidopa in Anti-Parkinson Drugs Based on Selective Reaction with Indole-3-Carbaldehyde

“…Recent studies have allowed to shed light on the genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors that influence the predisposition to the second-most common age-related neurodegenerative disease [3][4][5][6] after Alzheimer's one, with molecular mechanisms resembling those observed in prion diseases [7][8][9]. PD affects millions of people worldwide, up to 2% over the age of sixty-five, prevalently men from Europe and North America [10][11][12].…”

“…In PD patients, dopaminergic neurons are damaged, and this leads to a deficiency in dopamine neurotransmitters, impairing the proper body movements and coordination but also damaging the working memory, feeling of pleasure, sleep regulation, and cognitive faculties, compromising the patient's autonomy and quality of life. Although there is still no cure for PD, several therapeutic strategies are employed in laboratory and clinical settings, including the mitigation of neuroinflammation [13][14][15], and, mainly, drug therapy based on restoration of the dopamine levels within the brain can lead to temporary symptomatic relief of motor symptoms of the disease and increase the life expectancy of patients [10,12]. However, because dopamine is not able to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB), in place of this neurotransmitter, its precursor levodopa (L-DOPA) represents the active ingredient of some pharmacological formulations for the treatment of PD, together with carbidopa or benserazide, which are peripheral DOPA-decarboxylase inhibitors that increase the L-DOPA availability within dopaminergic neurons, where it is converted to dopamine (Figure 1), requiring lower doses and reducing adverse side effects [5,16,17].…”