As we grow older, stress levels naturally increase.
A new study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation looks at how chemicals associated with stress can progress the effects of Alzheimer’s disease. This new research out of the University of Southern Florida is specifically examining the relationship between the protein Tau, which is the biomarker for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s when it experiences changes, and FKBP51, a protein that is associated with stress.
Researchers at USF conducted experiments with post-mortem Alzheimer’s brain tissue samples, genetically altered mice that produced increased levels of tau, and chemical staining on samples to develop new models that focused on identifying the stress chemical chains and their interaction with the tau protein. The stress protein FKBP51, which can generate from many forms of common stress, including anxiety and depression, was found to couple with another common protein, Hsp90, to create a destabilizing chemical chain which causes tau to mutate to its toxic form.
Further, the new protein chain also encourages the spread of malicious tau proteins and works to maintain the form of the “bad” tau. Principal investigator Chad Dickey, PhD, describes the chemical chain as creating “an environment that prevents the removal of tau and makes it more toxic”. As well as stating, “Basically, it uses Hsp90 to produce and preserve the bad tau.”
The stress protein FKBP51 naturally becomes more prevalent in our brain as we age, increasing the exposure and possibility for developing memory loss. We at Arcadia Home Care want to make sure your aging loved ones experience as little stress as possible during their day-to-day lives and have developed many programs designed to reduce stress and daily risk through the work of our compassionate caregivers.
If you have a loved one that is becoming less able and, in turn, more stressed with age, please reach out to Arcadia today. Call 877-484-4183 or click here to see if Arcadia can help your needs.
