DNA and Protein Changes in Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive, irreversible, neurodegenerative disease. The key to understanding this disease is to elucidate the pathogenesis of neuron degeneration in specific brain regions. In this study, we found that there is increased DNA oxidation in patient brain compared to age-matched control subjects, especially in mitochondrial DNA, and that the changes in both nuclear and mitochondrial DNA bases will affect protein expression in mitochondria and contribute to neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease.